The Democratic Character

The concept of the democratic character is new to me. Rather than the ideal or most legitimate person to participate in democracy, the term democratic character refers to the type of person or groups that democracy produces. Surprisingly, the philosophers assigned for readings (Plato, Aristotle, Nietzsche, Mill) gave a rather negative account off the democratic character. Plato and Nietzsche seem to suggest that democracy produces a People without any values; a striving for banality for the former and an indulgent, directionless apathy for the latter. Mill lays out a framework for societal intervention into an individual's autonomous life precisely because democracy tends towards might equalling right and the imposition of a universal morality upon the varied individual.

Regarding fat acceptance, i don't have much to say this time (or rather, too much to say and not enough space or coherence or directness to say it). I would like to share an interesting take on the person that democracy produces. Basing his argument on the writing of Alexis de Tocqueville in Democracy in America ('the tyranny of the majority' from week 3) Eric Sutter suggests that democracy lends itself to a mindset that produces obesity. "Democracy, Tocqueville argued, conditions men to love equality more than freedom" which Sutter equates to loving the equality of the instant positive effects of food over the immediately negative effects of freedom as health habits (ie gyms, restricting food intake). It was an interesting take on the democratic character, although Sutter thinks that democracy and obesity is a uniquely American problem: "parallels between Tocqueville’s discussion of equality and freedom and the typical American mindset toward food. These parallels offered a partial explanation as to why there is an obesity problem in America and not, for example, in England".

Sutter, E 2013 "Is Democracy the Cause of Obesity", in Res Publicas, Ashbrook Centre viewed April 20 2014 < http://ashbrook.org/publications/respub-2013-sutter2/>

("The Ashbrook Center, an independent center at Ashland University, restores and strengthens the capacities of the American people for constitutional self-government. The Center teaches students and teachers across our country what America is and what America represents in the long history of the world.  Ashbrook creates informed patriots." http://ashbrook.org/about/ )

Readings this week:

J. S. Mill “On Liberty’ in D. Ravitch and A. Thernstrom (eds) The Democracy Reader: Classic and Modern Speeches, Essay, Poems, Declarations and Documents on Freedom and Human Rigths Worldwide, New York, Harper Perennial, 1992, pp. 65-70.

Plato, excerpt from The Republic in D. Ravitch and A. Thernstrom (eds) The Democracy Reader: Classic and Modern Speeches, Essay, Poems, Declarations and Documents on Freedom and Human Rights Worldwide, New York, Harper Perennial, 1992,pp. 5-8.

Aristotle, excerpt from The Politics in D. Ravitch and A. Thernstrom (eds) The Democracy Reader: Classic and Modern Speeches, Essay, Poems, Declarations and Documents on Freedom and Human Rigths Worldwide, New York, Harper Perennial, 1992, pp. 9-12.

F. Nietzsche, from Beyond Good and Evil, in D. Ravitch and A. Thernstrom (eds) The Democracy Reader: Classic and Modern Speeches, Essay, Poems, Declarations and Documents on Freedom and Human Rights Worldwide, New York, Harper Perennial, 1992, pp. 77-79.

W. Brown, “Wounded Attachments” in States of Injury, Princeton, New Jersey, Princeton University Press, 1995, pp. 52-76.