The Summary Cause for the
Stability or Downfall of Human Societies
Foreword
This translation of Rosmini’s Philosophy of Politics was prompted in part by the need for an English edition of works frequently quoted by the author in his Philosophy of Right, two volumes of which(1) have already been published. This need, however, must not be considered the prevalent factor in determining the immediate issue of The Summary Cause for the Stability and Downfall of Human Societies and Society and Its Purpose, which make up the Philosophy of Politics. Far more important is the present state of civil society, and our general understanding of the nature of society.
We live in a civilisation where photo-opportunities and sound-bites are rapidly taking the place of reasoned argument in civil affairs; we are not given the opportunity of asking about the purpose of society, nor about the nature of its essential elements, nor about the means by which society is to achieve its end. This is particularly dangerous at moments of history marked by gross materialism with its inevitable tendency to individualism. Consumerism, our own brand of materialism, is necessarily destructive of the union between persons on which society depends.
It is a simple fact that social groupings of every kind are under threat, and will not be saved from destruction without a concerted effort to re-discover the fundamental principles on which society is founded.
Rosmini’s Philosophy of Politics provides a framework within which the discussion can be revived or initiated, and carried forward. Although written over a century and a half ago, its basic argument has not been outdated. In some ways, the thrust of the work seems more urgent than ever.
When Rosmini asks, for example, what government is for, and what it has to achieve, we recognise gaps in our own questioning and understanding. How can we exercise responsibly our rights as enfranchised citizens if we are ignorant of the purpose of government? Can we vote responsibly, and thus contribute to the well-being of society, without some opinion of the progress expected by society from its elected representatives?
These and other questions are also relevant to the means by which government intends to achieve its aim after setting correct priorities for its own nation and itself. Dynamism is not everything. Looking in the right direction, but moving in the opposite way can often be more dangerous than marking time. What we need from government is the foresight to balance interests in society so that society as a whole will be able to make progress.
This progress, Rosmini maintains, is found only in the contentment realised by the spirit of the members of society. In other words, the aim of society is true, human good. This is a complex end, which does not and cannot consist in material well-being alone; it is an end which takes account of persons rather than things; it is an end in which virtue, the only source of contentment, is prized above all else; an end which has to be provided for by all particular political sciences, including economics.
If this end is forgotten or ignored, only a facade of society remains. The internal will for society has vanished and the external apparatus, solid though it may appear, is doomed to perish.
The supreme, mortal error is to lose sight of the substantial reality which sustains society, and devote total attention to what is accidental. A materially privileged people, full of whinging malcontents, is not a society on the march to greater well-being, but a group in need of salvation. The big business of commercial football, to take an trivial example, may not bring the same contentment to its `teams’ as the junior school league does to its members.
A more serious example of the depth of inward contentment is that of Numa Pompilius who, when `he set up an altar to Good Faith, that is, to a code of morality, was more aware than modern economists of the meaning of economy.’
Rosmini’s aim in this book is to open our eyes to the formative elements of society, to indicate the means needed for the preservation of this inner reality, and to show that neglect of these means leads to the downfall of every society. He achieves his purpose brilliantly in a profound meditation which combines great depth of thought with careful observation of history and living reality. But above all he draws attention to the fundamental principles which alone sustain both individuals and society.
DENIS CLEARY
TERENCE WATSON
Durham July 1994
Notes
(1) The Essence of Right and Rights of the Individual, Durham, 1993.