Pluralism and the Politics of the Good

The disputes that erupted after the Sohrab Ahmari-David French exchange cover a lot of territory — too much to begin to summarize. But they have illuminated a broader debate about the fate of “liberalism,” (itself a disputed term), in particular, a tension between procedural accounts of political life and substantive accounts of the political good. Some liberals and critics of liberalism hold that a “liberal” society requires a value-neutral public square. (Other critics of liberalism argue that, far from being a neutral worldview, “liberalism” itself smuggles certain values into the public square.) This is one of the reasons why Ahmari’s invocation of a politics oriented toward the “common good” and the “Highest Good” has rankled some; they see such an aim as antithetical to liberalism. However, it seems to me that it is possible to bring together both elements of “liberal” procedure — that is, individual rights, contested democratic elections, the rule of law, and so forth — and the possibility of a substantive narrative of the common good (and maybe even the highest good). Indeed, a politics stripped of the good might be unable to sustain the intellectual and cultural capital that makes a “liberal” regime possible in the first place.

In some ways, an absolutely neutral public square is impossible. Any government that exists will espouse certain kinds of values and reject other ones. Government policies will inevitably favor certain interests or groups. For instance, in American public life, we treat health care for the elderly very differently from how we treat it for Americans of working age; conversely, we guarantee young Americans certain educational opportunities that we deny to older ones (a forty-year-old would have a hard time enrolling at a local middle school). Even in more minor ways, government at various levels privileges certain viewpoints. For instance, a principal who instituted “Abraham Lincoln Day” at a public school would probably inspire little controversy outside the wokest or most reactionary wings of American life. “Adolf Hitler Day,” however, would likely garner a rebuke from a local school board. American public holidays in part are about enshrining certain figures in national life. This is one of the reasons why such holidays can be a cultural–political battle line — because they promote certain values and certain figures of esteem.

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About the Author

Fred Bauer

Fred Bauer is a writer from New England.

The disputes that erupted after the Sohrab Ahmari-David French exchange cover a lot of territory — too much to begin to summarize. But they have illuminated a broader debate about the fate of “liberalism,” (itself a disputed term), in particular, a tension between procedural accounts of political life and substantive accounts of the political good. Some liberals and critics of liberalism hold that a “liberal” society requires a value-neutral public square. (Other critics of liberalism argue that, far from being a neutral worldview, “liberalism” itself smuggles certain values into the public square.) This is one of the reasons why Ahmari’s invocation of a politics oriented toward the “common good” and the “Highest Good” has rankled some; they see such an aim as antithetical to liberalism. However, it seems to me that it is possible to bring together both elements of “liberal” procedure — that is, individual rights, contested democratic elections, the rule of law, and so forth — and the possibility of a substantive narrative of the common good (and maybe even the highest good). Indeed, a politics stripped of the good might be unable to sustain the intellectual and cultural capital that makes a “liberal” regime possible in the first place.

In some ways, an absolutely neutral public square is impossible. Any government that exists will espouse certain kinds of values and reject other ones. Government policies will inevitably favor certain interests or groups. For instance, in American public life, we treat health care for the elderly very differently from how we treat it for Americans of working age; conversely, we guarantee young Americans certain educational opportunities that we deny to older ones (a forty-year-old would have a hard time enrolling at a local middle school). Even in more minor ways, government at various levels privileges certain viewpoints. For instance, a principal who instituted “Abraham Lincoln Day” at a public school would probably inspire little controversy outside the wokest or most reactionary wings of American life. “Adolf Hitler Day,” however, would likely garner a rebuke from a local school board. American public holidays in part are about enshrining certain figures in national life. This is one of the reasons why such holidays can be a cultural–political battle line — because they promote certain values and certain figures of esteem.