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Democracy and its Critics
Sterling
Representation: They Key to Popular Rule
Philosophers all over the world have debated the idea of rule of the people for thousands
of years. Some notable contributors to the conversation have been Philosophers such as Aristotle
and Plato. The debate has been brought forth even into later times when authors such as
Rousseau and Madison debated and wrote on the topic of rule of the people. While some argue
that rule of the people is a good thing such as Aristotle or Plato, others argue that this is not the
case. Representative governments are the best medium for the people to rule because they are the
most efficient and offer the most protection against corruption and factious influence. Rule of the
people is most successful through representation as argued by Madison and Schumpeter.
The common people under a government are capable of ruling that government due to
many reasons. The common people are the ones who allow the country to move forward by
doing all of its duties. These include running the day-to-day chores that are required by a
civilization. The fact that the common people are so in tune with what is going on, by the work
they do every day, gives them an advantage in terms of governing. Since the common people are
the workers and main laborers, they are the ones that understand the issues and problems that are
set in front of a government. That is one main advantage the people as a whole have in respect to
democracy. As stated by Robert Bisset “a country ought to be governed by its joint ability and
property, and that identity of interest between the people and members.”
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Bisset argues that the
people and the government need to be connected as one in terms of government and political
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Bisset, Robert. Sketch of Democracy, (Dublin, 1798) ii.
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power. Whether this is through representation or through absolute democracy is to be argued
later. While there are arguments for both versions of popular governing, representation is the
most efficient way to all people to rule. While many authors argue for representation, there are
many authors who argue for democracy in its purest form. This form includes allowing all
citizens to participate in democracy and rule the government as a whole. One of these authors
that argues for a different kind of democracy is Pseudo-Xenophon.
Pseudo-Xenophon believes that the people should have the power in terms of government
and ruling. His first point is that “the poor and the ordinary people there should have more power
than the noble and the rich, because it is the ordinary people who man the fleet and bring the city
her power.”
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In a state it is usually the poor and lower class people that do all of the work that
keeps the state functioning. Xenophon believes that they should have the power to govern
because they are already the ones doing the heavy lifting in the state. The aristocrats and elite
make up a smaller portion of the citizens and also are less directly connected to the workings of a
state. If the common people are the ones making the state progress forward, then they should be
the ones who have a say in the direction their government moves in.
In order for this to happen effectively the people need to be informed and aware of the
current problems in the state. Xenophon argues that one way to ensure participation and
awareness is to have the people “share public office by lot.”
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By using a lottery system it forces
all citizens to take a turn in the top governing positions and makes sure that each citizen is aware
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J.M. Moore, trans., Aristotle and Xenophon on Democracy and Oligarchy, (Berkley: University of
California Press), 37.
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J.M. Moore, trans., Aristotle and Xenophon on Democracy and Oligarchy, (Berkley: University of
California Press), 37.
of the current state of their government. A lottery system allows that each citizen has a fair
chance in participating in government and is active in the community. This is important because
a well informed populous is capable of ruling, while one that lacks awareness is not. That is one
of the key factors in determining whether the people are capable of ruling or not.
Rousseau argues that the people as a whole should have the governing power because of
the general will that is good for all citizens in a society. He believes that “ the constant will of all
members of the state is the general will.”
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Rousseau believes the general will is the thing that is
best for all citizens and always works in favor of each and every individual. The goal of
government in Rousseau’s eyes is to get each individual private interest and will to align with the
general will of all people. Rousseau believes that the general will is always right regardless of
individual private interests. This is an important concept when it comes to determining the
