From Hobbes and Locke to Machiavelli’s virtù in the political context of meliorism: popular eucosmia and the value of moral memory
This study identifies a genealogy between Thomas Hobbes’ theory of absolute government and John Locke’s liberal worldview. It traces the seeds of eighteenth century optimistic liberal ideologies (endorsed by thinkers decisively influenced by Locke and Adam Smith) in Hobbes’ pessimistic theorie...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Editura Institutul European Iasi
2021-09-01
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| Series: | Polis: Revista de Stiinte Politice |
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| Online Access: | http://revistapolis.ro/documente/revista/2021/3(33)/2.%20M.%20Theodosiadis.pdf |
| Summary: | This study identifies a genealogy between Thomas Hobbes’ theory of
absolute government and John Locke’s liberal worldview. It traces the seeds of
eighteenth century optimistic liberal ideologies (endorsed by thinkers decisively
influenced by Locke and Adam Smith) in Hobbes’ pessimistic theories concerning
his radical distrust of the capacities of the ‘common man and woman’ to build up
democratic commonwealths. Following Christopher Lasch’s path, it proposes a
hopeful (or melioristic) view on politics, which (as opposed to the optimism of
eighteenth century liberalism) does not propose endless and steady improvement
or perfection. It reflects on Machiavelli’s notion of virtù (virtue) that we could
think of it in relation to Arendt’s idea of action. The latter points to the ancient
Athenian polis or to the American council system of direct democracy. More
precisely, virtù stands for eucosmia, which revolves around the importance of
memory. In short, virtù refers to the courage and the moral capital that members
of a society acquire thanks to the experiences they gain from action. |
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| ISSN: | 1221-9762 2344-5750 |