Democracy, Math books, and Walt Whitman

Ah, common place blog.  It feels good to be back.  :)

 Democracy

 Walt Whitman spends a lot of time extolling the virtues of a democracy, of freedom of expression, in his essay “Democratic Vistas” but he is also quick to say that “I will not gloss over the appalling dangers of universal suffrage in the United States.”  Coming from the perspective of the nineteen year old, native Minnesotan, it was difficult to fathom the idea of not having universal suffrage.  This could be due to some slight bleeding heart tendencies, but as far back as I can remember in my public school career we learned that everyone had equal opportunities for success and freedom.  Naïve as it sounds, this belief has resonance, and it’s not completely false; it is really more of a core “American” value than one would believe.

  If you were to ask me how democracy works, I admit that I’d be confounded by the question.  This was not always the case.  If you were to ask me when I was younger, the answer would be a resounding “Democracy is for the people to all get a say and equal chances.” That was how it worked; if you tried your best, you’d eventually be rewarded.  Someone would be looking out for you.  Sadly, with my newfound cynicism, this is not the case.  There is no grand unifying explanation for how democracy works. There’s the basic, people vote, but a single vote really doesn’t have the much impact, to be perfectly frank. People get to be heard, fair enough, but the best answer I can give you, without feeling like a complete phony, is that “Democracy is not a mindset where the individual succeeds.  It’s a mindset where the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.” This is far too simplistic, and of course, there will be the extremely valid argument that the elite are running the system, but on the wings of a broad and idealistic generalization, this explanation is what springs to mind.

Democracy makes the people feel like they’re being listened to; after all, it’s “demo” Latin for “people”, and “kratia” meaning “power.” So, power of the people.  It gives people a feeling of being heard, making us feel like our contributions are valued.  This could be a stretch, but I’d almost say that having a democracy contributes to freedom of speech.  People feel as though they can speak, they are given a voice, thus they choose to speak more.  However, this may be a confusion of freedom of speech with the desire to speak, rather than the ready availability of those speeches.

At its best, a democracy enhances the people’s sense of worth.  It inspires us to aspire to greater, almost dizzying heights.  As previously stated, it encourages people to express themselves and work towards exhibiting their new ideas.  We feel as though we are making a difference, that our thoughts count. This is at its best.  At its worst, democracy is run by the elite, those who possess power.  It becomes stagnant and does not work towards the “greater good” but the whims of the few.  There is no real original expression, and there is no betterment of man.  Rather, there is a disparity between the majority and the minority and no real hope of reconciliation.  It is a sort of tyranny, where there can be a slight majority which dominates a large minority.

Democracy shapes our lives and gives us (by us, I mean the American public) an identity.  The average American is able to say that democracy is something that they believe in, along with the leaders that they voted for (or against).  It gives a bold idea to center a national feeling around, a sense of who we are and where we’re going.  There is a sense of real power and belief behind the simple idea of a democracy.  We often speak of bringing democracy to people, and this idea is frequently seen in a positive light.  By being a democratic society, we feel an obligation to enable other nations to do the same.  Clearly, we hold some value to this idea, and we’ve formed ourselves around it.

While reading my math book today, I came across a quote by Tom Stoppard that said “It’s not the voting that’s democracy, it’s the counting.” That’s really what it comes down to when it comes to democracy.  We “do” democracy by helping others to be counted, making every sure every voice has a say.  Is it a perfect system? No, (my math book later went to say that no democratic election is ever completely fair) but no system is ever perfect.  However, this system contributes to a mindset that bolsters belief, and that makes it work.