It is important to note that the Romantics focused on individual passion rather that the rise of science which was the previous movement called the Enlightenment. Frankenstein is a useful film to watch because Mary Shelley, the author of the book that the film is based on was a Romantic author. She was only twenty one when her book was published. The story is about a scientist who creates a human who turns out to be a monster, a lot of emotions are explored and an ultimate message of what it would be like to play God. If we look at poetry William Wordsworth and John Keats wrote in this time period. With regards to music, Beethovan was a radical composer of his time.
The American Revolution based on Locke and the French Revolution instigated by Rousseau consisted of ideas on democracy although interestingly both men didn't like the idea of democracy to begin with. They felt that a government's importance is its purpose. Therefore the legitimacy in a government is not its form but rather its purpose and fulfilment of that purpose.
Locke's law of nature states that all mankind is equal and should defend their rights and persecute those who violate their rights (remember that we learnt that Locke didn't believe in the Divine Right of Kings). This is very different to the thinking of Aristotle which states that men are not equal but that some were born for slavery and others were born to dominate and rule.
The problems with John Locke's law of nature is conflicting interpretations on how to defend ones rights, someone judging his own case (bias), and the fact that the innocent man might not be able to defend himself. In order for these problems to be resolved people actually formed a society leaving this state of nature and asking for the consent of the government to protect their rights. Rousseau agrees with Locke that legitimate government is formed by the consent of governed but he has a different idea on the purpose of government. He felt that people lacked the resources to survive, so there was a preservation of the individuals who established a government based on general will, obviously people who failed to act in the general rule failed to be legitimate.
Democracy had problems, so John Locke devised something called the representative democracy where the legislative and executive were separate from one another so that the people that consider themselves 'exempt from the laws they make' (John Locke) may have a general interest in the benefits of the whole community.
I think that the most intersting thing about Rousseau is the fact that he believed in 'forcred freedom', making people be free, the question is if this is then true freedom? Rousseau looked at society and how and why men consider themselves to be masters over he others. H esays that the family is the oldest 'society', but that children are only bonded to the father for as long as they need him. Rousseau uses this as a platform to say that the natural state of mankind is to care for his own individual preservation first and foremost. The difference between a family and the state is love between father and child, a love that is impossible for rulers to feel for their subjects, in it's place is 'the pleasure of commanding' (Rousseau).
Rousseau talks about surrendering under compulsion and questions power 'all power comes from God, I admit; but so does all sickness: does that mean that we are forbidden to call in the doctor?' (Rousseau 1762). He says that people in control do not necessarily have the right to be and that we should only obey 'legitimate' power, this is what makes slavery wrong; we do not naturally have any power over someone. Rousseau says that someone who gives himself up willingly or 'graciously' is out of his mind and that madness is illegitimate. There is no balance in slavery, on one end there is unlimited control whilst on the receiving end there is forever surrender. If a slave belongs to me he has no right against me because his right belongs to me too (I couldn't go againts myself).
Rouseau belived that a man may have all that he needs to live (state of nature) but that he should not take any more land for example then he needs for 'subsistence', and if he does it should be throuhg hard work and it should be legitimate.
We are biologically similar to animals but we differ in that we have general will, free choice, ethics and a morality structure. Roussea believes that giving up a persons freedom is giving up what makes them human and he says in the social contract that 'to remove freedom from a man's will is to take away the morality from his acts'.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Kirkjasto (online) (last accessed 13 November 2009). Available at: http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/mshelley.htm
youtube (online) (last accessed 13 November 2009). Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AlJFKJXHSvU
youtube (online) (last accessed 13 November 2009). Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QnXhRsFXSQk&NR=1
constitution (online) (last accessed 14 November 2009). Available at: http://www.constitution.org/jjr/socon.htm
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