Republicanism vs Liberalism: Comparing the Two Traditions

The political philosophy of the Enlightenment gave rise to two great traditions: republicanism and liberalism. The two traditions have shaped the development of modern democratic politics, and the contemporary debate about the proper foundations of modern democracy is, a debate about the proper relationship between them. This article compares the two traditions, examines their key differences, and considers the contemporary debate about their relationship.

The Liberal Tradition

Liberalism is the political tradition that emphasizes individual rights, limited government, and the protection of personal liberty. The liberal tradition was developed in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries by writers such as John Locke and the various British and Continental thinkers who built on his work.

The basic principles of liberalism include the principle of individual rights (the belief that all human beings possess certain fundamental rights by virtue of their nature as human beings), the principle of limited government, the principle of the rule of law, and the principle of economic liberty. The first three are developed in detail in Republicanism and Liberalism; this article focuses on the specific comparison between the two traditions.

The liberal tradition has been the dominant political philosophy of the modern West, especially in the English-speaking world. The American Revolution, the French Revolution, the various constitutional movements of the nineteenth century, and the contemporary international human rights regime draw on the central arguments of the liberal tradition.

The Republican Tradition

Republicanism is the political tradition that emphasizes civic virtue, the common good, and active participation in self-government. The republican tradition has a long history, going back to the Roman Republic and the Italian city-republics of the Renaissance, and it was developed in the modern period by writers such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau and the various other thinkers who emphasized the importance of civic participation.

The basic principles of republicanism include:

The principle of civic virtue: the belief that the proper functioning of the political life requires the cultivation of the civic virtues — the love of the public good, the willingness to subordinate private interests to the common good, the readiness to participate actively in the life of the community.

The principle of popular sovereignty: the belief that the people are the ultimate source of political authority, and that the proper function of government is the implementation of the will of the people.

The principle of self-government: the belief that human beings are capable of governing themselves, and that the proper political life is one in which the citizens participate actively in the determination of the conditions of their common life.

The republican tradition has been an important alternative to the liberal tradition, especially in France and in the various countries that were influenced by the French Revolution. The American Revolution was also, a republican revolution, drawing on the classical republican tradition as well as the liberal tradition of Locke.

The Key Differences

The two traditions differ in several important respects.

The first difference concerns the foundation of the political life. The liberal tradition grounds the political life in the protection of individual rights, and it sees the proper function of government as the protection of these rights. The republican tradition grounds the political life in the cultivation of the common good, and it sees the proper function of government as the implementation of the collective will of the community.

The second difference concerns the proper relationship between the individual and the community. The liberal tradition emphasizes the rights of the individuals against the state, and it tends to be suspicious of governmental power. The republican tradition emphasizes the responsibilities of the individuals to the community, and it tends to be more sympathetic to the use of governmental power to achieve the common good.

The third difference concerns the proper scope of governmental power. The liberal tradition advocates for limited government, in which the proper scope of governmental power is restricted to the protection of the basic rights of the citizens. The republican tradition advocates for more active government, in which the proper scope of governmental power is broader and includes the implementation of the common good.

The Contemporary Debate

The contemporary debate about the proper relationship between the two traditions is one of the central debates of contemporary political thought.

The defenders of the liberal tradition emphasize the importance of the protection of individual rights, the limitation of governmental power, and the rule of law. They argue that the liberal tradition provides the best framework for thinking about the proper relationship between the individual and the state, and that the principles of the tradition are basic to the modern understanding of legitimate political authority.

The defenders of the republican tradition emphasize the importance of civic participation, the common good, and the proper functioning of the democratic process. They argue that the liberal tradition is inadequate to the challenges of contemporary politics, and that a more republican framework is needed to cultivate the civic virtues that are necessary for the proper functioning of the political life.

The proper political life, on most contemporary accounts, requires a balance between the insights of the two traditions. The liberal tradition provides the principles for the protection of individual rights and the limitation of governmental power; the republican tradition provides the principles for the cultivation of civic virtue and the active participation of citizens in the life of the community. The contemporary debate about the proper balance between the two traditions is part of the broader debate about the proper foundations of modern democracy.

Further Reading

• The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (plato.stanford.edu), relevant entry
• Mark Goldie & Robert Wokler, eds., The Cambridge History of Eighteenth-Century Political Thought (2006)
• Terence Ball, Reappraising Political Theory (1995)