Political Science 1020E Lecture 13: Lecture 22/10/2015
19 Nov 2015
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Auto = self, nomos = law or rule. Democracy embodies a commitment to freedom or self-rule. Rousseau is mostly responsible for this understanding. Freedom is not the capacity to do what we want. Instead, freedom is obedience to law we give ourselves. Rousseau: the mere impulse of appetite is slavery, while obedience to a law which we prescribe to ourselves is liberty. Objection: democracy is not a form of freedom: Those on the losing side are subject to law they do not give themselves. Majority rule" means the majority are not self-ruling. Therefore, those in the minority are not free. Democracy provides more autonomy than any other decision procedure. Democracy gives every citizen the opportunity to participate on equal terms in law- making. Democracy participation in an essential element in a flourishing life. Aristotle claimed that human beings are political animals. What makes us human is our capacity to reflect, discuss, and create the laws under which we live.
