Plato s argument against democracy on Page 66 Plato understands democracy as mob rule 1 His anti democracy argument is based on the craft analogy No matter what we do it is the opinion of the experts that matters not the general public Therefore political decisions should be made by experts with trainings and skills not by ordinary people Ruling should be done by the experts not the people These experts can now people s interest more than people themselves However in a democratic society an expert with the skill of ruling will not be elected a leader because citizens tend to vote for the most popular person 2 Who are the experts at ruling There are the philosopher kings 2 Who are the experts at ruling They are the philosopher kings For Plato a just society is impossible unless the kings become philosophers or the philosophers become kings For Plato a just society is impossible unless the kings become philosophers or the philosophers become kings The reason is that philosophical training is a necessary qualification to rule How are the guardians or philosopher kings to be appointed Plato s answer They are picked out at an earlier age and are given the best education Therefore not only they are capable of ruling but also they are capable of resisting temptations Details of Plato s plan in textbook 3 Objections to Plato s argument A The unchecked power leads to corruption Why should we give the unchecked power to the expert rulers The philosopher kings or the guardians They may be capable of ruling but they are likely to be corrupted by the absolute power Plato s answer we can place them in a position where the opportunities for corruption are minimized they are not allowed to have private property so they do not have a need to accumulate money or family even unselfish people would be biased towards their own family etc They can only have certain privileges when they are retired so that they will be focused on serving the people and not themselves Problem How can these laws be enforced The laws that they cannot have families property etc B Why do the philosopher kings want to rule Glory compensation They do not have these things Plato s answer They do not rule for reward Sense of duty They rule because they do not want to be ruled by others C Democratic governments know what people want better than philosopher kings Plato s defense of his position Philosopher kings know the real interest the common good of people better and can serve these interests better than democratic government D Democracy is intrinsically valuable even if it cannot bring us more goods than the dictatorship Intrinsic value Instrumental value The hobby analogy We value skills sometimes not just for their results but for themselves too We value democracy because it reflects the value of freedom and equality everyone is to be respected as equals 3 Rousseau s theory of direct democracy People as the collective sovereign Democracy is a better governmental form to promote common goods 1 The distinction between particular will and general will Voting in your own interests is to pursue your particular will voting for the common good is to follow the general will There is a difference between the general will and the majority opinion the sum of the particular will General will is supposed to prevail in the democratic process A The general will demands the policy that is equally in everyone s interest B General will applies equally to all citizens It makes laws that affect all citizens not targeted at particular individuals or groups 2 How can we make and apply the law according to the general will Laws should express the general will They should be made by a popular assembly not a parliament and executed by an elected aristocracy composed of the wisest a small government All citizens are supposed to show up in the popular assembly and vote to decide whether a certain proposal is in conformity with the general will What is the difference between the philosopher kings and Rousseau s elected aristocracy The elected aristocracy is elected by people and can not make law Give an example of the difference between the general will and the majority opinion 3 How and why can the assembly of people discover the general will Example Should we cut the corporate tax A Citizens are well educated intellectual education therefore they understand the issues B Society should be designed in such a way that people will not have difficulty to discover the general will a An ideal society should be classless where everyone is equal to others b There should be no political parties or political factions or interest groups Example The law of the long gun registry 4 How can the citizens be motivated to follow the general will The education moral education for civic virtue is a must so that people can identify themselves with the state Civic virtues will enhance social bonds Censorship is needed to discourage anti social behaviors inflicting shame Civil religion is needed to ensure social unity It has the instrumental value to create social unity 5 There are serious limitations of freedom in Rousseau s direct democracy The freedom of thought is restricted in the field of religion It is impossible to live an unconventional life in Rousseau s ideal society because of censorship Rousseau s justification for the limitations of freedom he has a positive notion of freedom It requires a certain type of action Positive freedom is defined as the freedom of living the life that the rational person would chose to live In contrast to that the normal notion of freedom is negative It only demands that we should be allowed to pursue what we want without the interference of others The idea that people can be forced to be free is very controversial Mill s Representative Democracy RD People elect representatives who both make laws and put them into practice 1 Why id democracy in general better than the good despotism Plato s Dictatorship A Democracy improves citizens morally and intellectually Despotism leads citizens to passivity and inaction whereas democracy turns citizens into responsible human beings who care about public interest B Democratic government manages public affairs better than dictatorship Example bike paths in Montreal Famine in India 2 The greatest obstacle to the representative democracy is that the voters are too ignorant to perceive the public good correctly Their judgements are clouded by their bias self interest and class interest The issue