Montesquieu's Teaching on the Dangers of Extreme Corrections: Japan, the Catholic Inquisition, and Moderation in<i>The Spirit of the Laws</i>

Gilmore, Nathaniel K.; Sullivan, Vickie B.

doi:10.1017/s0003055417000107

Cited by 4 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…9 As Sharon Krause has written, “Montesquieu’s explicit identification of despotism with the empires of the East conceals his implicit warning about the dangers of despotic rule in the West” (Krause 2001, 259). Montesquieu found despotic tendencies even in Europe, in the French monarchy’s aim of territorial expansion, as well as in the abuses and immoderation of Catholic authorities (Gilmore and Sullivan 2017; Rahe 2009b, 26; Sullivan 2017). On this view, Montesquieu may have wanted to establish a distinction between monarchy and despotism because he wanted to emphasize the unattractive nature of the latter (Krause 2001, 236).…”

Section: Geographies Of Despotismmentioning

confidence: 99%

Oriental Despotism and the Limits of Doux Commerce, from Montesquieu to Raynal

Yoon

2022

Political Theory

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According to one interpretation, Montesquieu believed that laws should be suited to the particular physical and moral characteristics of a nation, and that political change should not be abruptly imposed. However, as Montesquieu nonetheless condemned despotism, he argued that change in despotic regimes should happen gradually through the noncoercive alternative of doux commerce. My aim is to challenge this interpretation of Montesquieu in two ways. First of all, Montesquieu was far more skeptical about the possibility of political change; so strong was his physical determinism that Montesquieu himself thought that despotic states could not be reformed, even through commerce. Second, even though successors of Montesquieu—such as the Abbé Raynal—did view the use of force in reforming despotic states as futile and preferred commerce as a benign alternative, they had to acknowledge that even commerce could not take root in those supposedly despotic states without coercion. The two most representative doux commerce theorists of the eighteenth century, when confronted with the prevailing trope of Oriental despotism, were far less optimistic about the civilizing effect of commerce than today’s interpretations suggest. My reading of The Spirit of the Laws and The History of the Two Indies suggests the limits of turning to eighteenth-century doux commerce ideals to theorize political reform in so-called despotic governments today.

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Section: Geographies Of Despotismmentioning

confidence: 99%

Oriental Despotism and the Limits of Doux Commerce, from Montesquieu to Raynal

Yoon

2022

Political Theory

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“…"There are two kinds of corruption: one, when the people do not observe the laws, the other when they are corrupted by the laws; the latter is an incurable ill because it lies in the remedy itself" (EL, 6.12). 7 This paper takes the distinction seriously.…”

Section: Two Kinds Of Corruptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…I take that this is just another way to say, in Montesquieu's terms, that the positive law must be moderate. For more on moderation, see Carrese 2016 7. Roger Boesche (1990) pays attention to this distinction, albeit in an incorrect way.…”

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confidence: 99%

Personal Corruption & Corrupting Laws: Montesquieu’s Twofold Theory of Corruption

Juarez-Garcia

2020

BEL

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Traditional views tend to identify the problem of corruption in the dishonesty of public officials. The main purpose of the research is to recover Montesquieu’s view of corruption and show that there are at least two different causes of corrupt behaviors. In The Spirit of Laws, Montesquieu distinguishes “two kinds of corruption: one, when the people do not observe the laws, the other when they are corrupted by the laws; the latter is an incurable ill because it lies in the remedy itself.” Recent studies about Montesquieu’s account of corruption do not pay much attention to this distinction. This paper unpacks the two kinds of corruption. The first kind tracks a problem of individuals who use their public office for private gain. The second track is the deficiency of the laws that contradict social behaviors and, therefore, are obeyed exclusively out of fear and violated whenever possible. The distinction is relevant to the anti-corruption literature because it implies two different ways to eradicate corruption. Corruption as a problem of individuals can be solved with better enforcement of the law: improving monitoring systems, better rewards for honesty, or higher punishments. Personal corruption can be dealt with what Celine Spector calls “a legislative arsenal.” However, improving enforcement mechanisms is unlikely to solve the problem in corrupting laws, given that people violate the law due to the high standards that it imposes on them. The solution for the second kind of corruption is to remove or modify the corrupting law. Montesquieu promoted the separation of powers and the spirit of moderation in the legislators to avoid corrupting laws. The result of this investigation is the importance of distinguishing between the situations in which more coercion can eradicate corruption and those in which more force against corruption leads to despotism. Keywords: Corruption, Legislation, Moderation, Montesquieu, Separation of Powers, Spirit of the Laws.

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“…Several scholars over the last decade have cited the epigraph above claiming that, for Montesquieu, moderation is "in a sense, [his] cause," 2 "a seminal theme" in his works, 3 "the central principle of his philosophy," 4 and a first virtue for legislators that indicates that Montesquieu himself "practices what he preaches." 5 And they are far from alone. 6 Indeed, the resurgence within political theory around moderation has found many lauding Montesquieu's approach and temperament as well suited not only to his own time but perhaps to ours as well.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Montesquieu’s Paradoxical Spirit of Moderation: On the Making of Asian Despotism in De l’esprit des lois

Haskins

2018

Political Theory

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In recent years, scholars have paid considerable attention to moderation in Montesquieu’s De l’esprit des lois. Still, little scholarship has considered how Montesquieu develops moderation as a concept and practice. In this article, I argue Montesquieu’s complementary defense of moderation and critique of despotism rely on immoderate argumentative practices of omission that enable him to reshape extant laudatory narratives of China and Japan. Through an analysis of Montesquieu’s primary texts on climate and commerce, I demonstrate that, absent these practices, Montesquieu’s “Asian despotism” collapses, revealing the moderate natures of both countries. This conclusion is paradoxical insofar as we take seriously Montesquieu’s claim that De l’esprit des lois upholds the spirit of moderation as of paramount importance. Moreover, I argue that this analysis of Montesquieu’s paradoxical spirit brings to light under-examined dimensions of Montesquieu’s work and alerts political theorists to how different reading practices can recast his “moderate” reputation.

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Montesquieu's Teaching on the Dangers of Extreme Corrections: Japan, the Catholic Inquisition, and Moderation inThe Spirit of the Laws

Cited by 4 publications

References 26 publications

Oriental Despotism and the Limits of Doux Commerce, from Montesquieu to Raynal

Oriental Despotism and the Limits of Doux Commerce, from Montesquieu to Raynal

Personal Corruption & Corrupting Laws: Montesquieu’s Twofold Theory of Corruption

Montesquieu’s Paradoxical Spirit of Moderation: On the Making of Asian Despotism in De l’esprit des lois

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