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Single Idea 22875

[filed under theme 24. Political Theory / D. Ideologies / 5. Democracy / a. Nature of democracy ]

Full Idea

A democracy is more than a form of government; it is primarily a mode of associated living, of conjoint communicated experience

Gist of Idea

Democracy is not just a form of government; it is a mode of shared living

Source

John Dewey (The Middle Works (15 vols, ed Boydston) [1910], 9:93), quoted by David Hildebrand - Dewey 4 'Democracy'

Book Ref

Hildebrand,David: 'Dewey' [One World 2008], p.119

A Reaction

This precisely pinpoints the heart of the culture wars in 2021. A huge swathe of western populations believe in Dewey's idea, but a core of wealthy right-wingers and their servants only see democracy as the mechanism for obtaining power.

The 34 ideas with the same theme [what democracy is]:

22559 Democracy is the worst of good constitutions, but the best of bad constitutions [Plato, by Aristotle]
87 Democracy is the best constitution for friendship, because it encourages equality [Aristotle]
2823 The many may add up to something good, even if they are inferior as individuals [Aristotle]
2826 Like water, large numbers of people are harder to corrupt than a few [Aristotle]
22560 Popular leaders only arise in democracies that are not in accord with the law [Aristotle]
22562 Choosing officials by lot is democratic [Aristotle]
22567 Democracy arises when people who are given equal freedom assume unconditional equality [Aristotle]
1541 It is better to be poor in a democracy than be rich without freedom [Democritus (attr)]
21938 Democracy needs respect for individuality, but the 'community of friends' implies strict equality [Grotius]
6682 Majority opinion is visible and authoritative, although not very clever [Pascal]
19887 Unanimous consent makes a united community, which is then ruled by the majority [Locke]
19901 The people have supreme power, to depose a legislature which has breached their trust [Locke]
19825 If the sovereign entrusts government to at least half the citizens, that is 'democracy' [Rousseau]
7229 People who transact their own business will also have the initiative to control their government [Mill]
22876 Democracy is the development of human nature when it shares in the running of communal activities [Dewey]
22875 Democracy is not just a form of government; it is a mode of shared living [Dewey]
23371 Modern democratic theory focuses on talk, not votes, because we need consensus or compromise [Kymlicka]
23254 Democracies should require a supermajority for major questions [Grayling]
23255 It is essential for democracy that voting is free and well informed [Grayling]
21131 Democracy is competition for support of the people, guided by self-interest on all sides [Posner]
20510 A system of democracy which includes both freedom and equality is almost impossible [Wolff,J]
20511 Democracy expresses equal respect (which explains why criminals forfeit the vote) [Wolff,J]
20502 Democracy has been seen as consistent with many types of inequality [Wolff,J]
20496 A true democracy could not tolerate slavery, exploitation or colonialism [Wolff,J]
21002 Effective democracy needs tolerant values [Sen]
20085 Democracy is the best compromise between legitimacy and efficiency [Reybrouck]
20559 Democracy is bad, but the other systems are worse [Swift]
20561 Since all opinions are treated as equal in democracy, it implies there are no right answers [Swift]
20562 Design your democracy to treat citizens equally, or to produce better citizens? [Swift]
20563 Design your democracy to yield political stability, or good decisions? [Swift]
21129 Democracy is a method of selection, or it involves participation, or it concerns public discussion [Shorten]
21130 Some say democracy is intrinsically valuable, others that it delivers good outcomes [Shorten]
20606 Epistemic theories defend democracy as more likely to produce the right answer [Tuckness/Wolf]
20600 Which areas of public concern should be decided democratically, and which not? [Tuckness/Wolf]