Combining Texts

All the ideas for 'fragments/reports', 'That Politics may be reduced to a Science' and 'What is Critique?'

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5 ideas

21. Aesthetics / C. Artistic Issues / 7. Art and Morality
468 Musical performance can reveal a range of virtues [Damon of Ath.]
     Full Idea: In singing and playing the lyre, a boy will be likely to reveal not only courage and moderation, but also justice.
     From: Damon (fragments/reports [c.460 BCE], B4), quoted by (who?) - where?
23. Ethics / C. Virtue Theory / 4. External Goods / d. Friendship
21093 Friendship without community spirit misses out on the main part of virtue [Hume]
     Full Idea: A man who is only susceptible of friendship, without public spirit or a regard to the community, is deficient in the most material part of virtue.
     From: David Hume (That Politics may be reduced to a Science [1750], p.21)
     A reaction: I think this is aimed at the epicureans. If the highest virtues are focused on one's friends that can easily lead to injustice, because it can tolerate prejudice against people who are very unlike one's friends.
24. Political Theory / B. Nature of a State / 3. Constitutions
21091 It would be absurd if even a free constitution did not impose restraints, for the public good [Hume]
     Full Idea: A republican and free form of government would be an obvious absurdity, if the particular checks and controls, provided by the constitution, had really no influence, and made it not the interest, even of bad men, to act for the public good.
     From: David Hume (That Politics may be reduced to a Science [1750], p.14)
     A reaction: Presumably if you attain absolute power you can write any old constitution you like (Clause 1: the presidency is for life). But there does seem much point in doing it - unless it is to facilitate the use of the law for persecutions.
24. Political Theory / C. Ruling a State / 2. Leaders / d. Elites
21092 Nobility either share in the power of the whole, or they compose the power of the whole [Hume]
     Full Idea: A nobility may possess power in two different ways. Either every nobleman shares the power as part of the whole body, or the whole body enjoys the power as composed of parts, which each have a distinct power and authority.
     From: David Hume (That Politics may be reduced to a Science [1750], p.15)
     A reaction: He says the first type is found in Venice, and is preferable to the second type, which is found in Poland. Presumably in the shared version there is some restraint on depraved nobles. The danger is each noble being an autocrat.
24. Political Theory / C. Ruling a State / 3. Government / a. Government
22236 The big question of the Renaissance was how to govern everything, from the state to children [Foucault]
     Full Idea: How to govern was one of the fundamental question of the fifteenth and sixteenth century. ...How to govern children, the poor and beggars, how to govern the family, a house, how to govern armies, different groups, cities, states, and govern one's self.
     From: Michel Foucault (What is Critique? [1982], p.28), quoted by Johanna Oksala - How to Read Foucault 9
     A reaction: A nice example of Foucault showing how things we take for granted (techniques of control) have been slowly learned, and then taught as standard. Of course, the Romans knew how to govern an army.