Key Concepts in Political Philosophy: Democracy, Justice, Social Contract

Understanding Core Concepts in Political Philosophy

Why Democracy is Preferable

Democracy is often considered preferable over other forms of government because it maximizes individual freedom within the political community. It serves as the primary remedy against the abuse of power, dictating that citizens themselves must choose those who best represent their interests.

Justice: Moral, Social, and Legal Dimensions

Justice can be examined from three distinct perspectives:

• Moral Aspect: As personal ethics, guiding individual conduct.
• Social Aspect: Defining relationships among members of society.
• Legal and Political Aspects: As a moral obligation within the framework of law and governance.

Justice, intrinsically linked with the concept of order, expresses the structured way in which personal, social, and political life should be organized. The criterion of justice serves to harmonize the elements that constitute a human being (both sensible and rational), to balance relationships between societal members, and to align civil society with the state as a political-legal system.

According to Aristotle, there are three principal kinds of justice:

• Legal Justice
• Distributive Justice
• Commutative Justice

The Moral Standard: Guiding Principles of Action

A moral norm is a principle or criterion accepted or established as a foundation that governs or regulates action. It serves to assess whether an action is morally good or bad. The moral foundation of a rule refers to its source or origin. Human beings are inherently moral; therefore, it is humanity that accepts or rejects any given standard. This standard may originate from within the individual or from external sources.

The Social Contract and Its Forms

The social contract signifies a fundamental link between the individual and society. A genuine social bond must be based on a free agreement, meaning it is not imposed by law but arises from voluntary consent. Through the social contract, individuals transition from "natural freedom" to "political freedom." This involves a relinquishment of what belongs to the natural man, not for an individual's will, but for the collective will of the community. Individuals move from a natural state and require a state founded on reason and the fruits of freedom. This is the state that emerges from the social contract.

Key theories and forms of the social contract include:

• Contract of Submission: (Thomas Hobbes)
• Liberal Contract: (John Locke)
• The Social Contract: (Jean-Jacques Rousseau)
• Neocontractualism Theory: (John Rawls)