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ERIC Number: ED270375
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1983-Feb
Pages: 20
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: ISBN-0-89633-069-9
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Constitutional Democracy vs. Utopian Democracy. Ethics and Public Policy Essay 42.
English, Raymond
Democracy has always been prone to self-destruction, and it was only after the American Civil War that democracy--or at least constitutional representative government--acquired a respectable reputation. There are two very different types of democracies each with its underlying philosophy, value system, and view of human nature. These are constitutional democracy and utopian democracy. The contrast between the American Revolution and the French is in essence the difference between the two types of democracy. The American Revolution strove to preserve English rights and legal institutions, and the old English tradition of the rule of law was made more rigid in the American governmental system. The old Judeo-Christian view of imperfect human beings was implicit in the Constitution. The French Revolution began with a vision of the liberation of mankind and ended in a military dictatorship. The utopian view of human nature is an embodiment of Jean-Jacques Rousseau's philosophy that assumes human beings are naturally good, generous, sociable, and peaceful. Constitutional democracy is less concerned with end results than is utopian democracy. The former is concerned with equal opportunity, not with equality in results or performance. Both types of democracy--especially in developing countries--have the potential to deteriorate into totalitarian regimes. (BZ)
Ethics and Public Policy Center, 1666 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 (1-19 copies, $1.00 ea., discounts on larger quantities).
Publication Type: Opinion Papers; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: Ethics and Public Policy Center, Washington, DC.
Identifiers - Laws, Policies, & Programs: United States Constitution
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A