Why Socrates thought democracy was a bad idea
“WE, THE PEOPLE OF INDIA, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a SOVEREIGN, SOCIALIST, SECULAR, DEMOCRATIC, REPUBLIC and to secure to all its citizens.”
as our constitution's preamble is saying India is a federal (or quasi-federal) democratic republic with a parliamentary system of government largely based on the UK model. Parliament is the “supreme legislative body of India” consisting of the President and the two Houses – Rajya Sabha (the Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (the House of the People). all fine! how amazing! isn't it? for people, by people, with people. & we also have one thing PEOPLE. (2nd largest population) all goody goody no problem hah! but,
Due to his whole corruption, which has been happening everywhere in India (from rape to money laundering) correspondingly in all developing nations in this world. Sometimes when I read any corruption news, especially in India, I feel who has given this idea of democracy as the voting ride to everyone cause it has not been serving its purpose. It’s getting misused & we all are suffering from it.
Yesterday, my interest was in the pick, therefore I search for it & this is what I have found.
The term "democracy" first appeared in ancient Greek political and philosophical thought in the city-state of Athens during classical antiquity. The word comes from demos, "common people" and Kratos, "strength". Led by Cleisthenes, Athenians established what is generally held as the first democracy in 508–507 BC.
In the dialogues of Plato, the founding father of Greek Philosophy – Socrates – is portrayed as hugely pessimistic about the whole business of democracy.but he himself was against it. WHY?
In Book Six of The Republic, Plato describes Socrates falling into conversation with a character called Adeimantus and trying to get him to see the flaws of democracy by comparing a society to a ship.
If you were heading out on a journey by sea, asks Socrates, who would you ideally want deciding who was in charge of the vessel?
Just anyone or people educated in the rules and demands of seafaring? The latter of course, says Adeimantus, so why then, responds Socrates, do we keep thinking that any old person should be fit to judge who should be a ruler of a country? Socrates’s point is that voting in an election is a skill, not a random intuition. And like any skill, it needs to be taught systematically to people.
Letting the citizenry vote without an education is as irresponsible as putting them in charge of a trireme sailing to Samos in a storm. Socrates was to have first hand, the catastrophic experience of the foolishness of voters.
After this what append to him we all know this. He was put to death by hemlock in a process which is, for thinking people, every bit as tragic as Jesus’s condemnation has been for Christians. Crucially, Socrates was not elitist in the normal sense. He didn’t believe that a narrow few should only ever vote.
He did, however, insist that only those who had thought about issues rationally and deeply should be let near a vote. We have forgotten this distinction between an intellectual democracy and a democracy by birthright. We have given the vote to all without connecting it to that of wisdom.
And Socrates knew exactly where that would lead: to a system the Greeks feared above all, demagoguery. dēmos ‘the people’ + agōgos ‘leading Ancient Athens had the painful experience of demagogues,
for example, the louche figure of Alcibiades, a rich, charismatic, smooth-talking wealthy man who eroded basic freedoms and helped to push Athens to its disastrous military adventures in Sicily. Socrates knew how easily people seeking election could exploit our desire for easy answers.
He asked us to imagine an election debate between two candidates, one who was like a doctor and the other who was like a sweet shop owner. The sweet shop owner would say of his rival: Look, this person here has worked many evils on you. He hurts you, gives you bitter potions and tells you not to eat and drink whatever you like. He’ll never serve you feasts of many and varied pleasant things as I will. Socrates asks us to consider the audience response: Do you think the doctor would be able to reply effectively?
The true answer – ‘I cause you trouble, and go against your desires in order to help you’ would cause an uproar among the voters, don’t you think? We have forgotten all about Socrates’s salient warnings against democracy. We have preferred to think of democracy as an unambiguous good – rather than a process that is only ever as effective as the education system that surrounds it. As a result, we have elected many sweet shop owners (tea seller in our country) and very few doctors (no eligible people in our country).
we all know what I'm talking & why should we think about it. in democracy, we vote for a popular leader not eligible & on therein lies all the problem.
let me know your thought in the comments.