政治参与和公民精神的互动——约翰·密尔《代议制政府》解读

在《代议制政府》中,约翰·密尔一方面强调政治过程的有效运转有赖于公民品质的支撑,尤其民主制度对于公民精神提出了更高的要求。另一方面,政治参与本身就是培育公民精神的重要途径。《代议制政府》中的各种制度设计和安排都可以从培育公民精神的角度来理解。从公民教育这一角度,密尔为民主制度做出了更加有力的辩护,而对于公民精神的强调则是构成其整体思想的一个重要方面。

The Interaction between Political Participation and Civic Spirit——An Interpretation of John Mill’s Considerations on Representative Government

In considerations on Representative Government, on one side, John Mill emphasizes that the effective operation of polit- ical process depends on the support of civic spirit. As for the democratic system, this is especially true, because the system has more re- quirements on Civic Spirit. On the other side, political participation itself is an important way to the cultivation of civic spirit. From this perspective, we can understand the institutional arrangement and design in Considerations on Representative Government. From this point, Mill has also made a more forceful argument in defense of the democratic system. The emphasis on the civic spirit is also an im- portant aspect of Mill＇s thought.