The Wisdom of the Commons: The Education of Citizens from Plato’s Republic to The Wealth of Nations (Palgrave Studies in Classical Liberalism)

The Wisdom of the Commons examines the history and philosophy of civic education as the essential political part of liberal education. This study distinguishes itself from other works on liberal and civic education by focusing explicitly on the civic and liberal education of those citizens who are not destined for prominent positions within politics and government but are still a part of and relevant to political society. It considers this strand of liberal and civic education, in both its ancient and modern iterations, by focusing on the philosophies of Plato, Cicero, Locke, Rousseau, and Adam Smith. Geoffrey Kellow is an Associate Professor in The College of the Humanities and the Department of Political Science at Carleton University, Canada. He specializes in the history of ideas. Professor Kellow researches the history of liberal education with a particular interest in the civic and economic components thereof. He is the editor of On Civic Republicanism (with Neven Leddy) and the author of essays and reviews published in both scholarly journals and the popular media. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from Carleton University. Acknowledgments Contents 1 Introduction 2 Plato’s Journey from the Cave to the City Introduction Athenian Education and Politics Socrates and Plato as Teachers Education and Diaresis The Civic Education of the Non-Philosophic in Plato’s Republic Education and Socialization True Opinion and Civic Education The Laws Education and Habituation Reason and Calculation, Logos and Logismos Consonance Plato’s Civic Prescription An End and an Invitation 3 Cicero’s Civic Education at the Dawn of Empire Introduction The Athenian Capture of Rome Roman History and Greek Philosophy Innovation and Transformation The Decline of Roman Education The Status of the Student Statesmen and Teachers A Shortage of Men 4 Locke’s Education for Ordinary Life and Liberal Citizenship Introduction The Teaching of the Tabula Rasa The Reintroduction of Nature and the Philosophic Student Civic Education and the Non-Philosophic Citizen The Non-Philosophic Student and the Uniform Pedagogy Habit and Custom: The Civic Education of Gentlemen Good Breeding, Good Example, and Social Replication 5 Rousseau and the Redefinition of Nature and Education Introduction Duty and Inclination: Nature at the Crossroads A Savage for the City: The Education of Emile After Locke: Rousseau’s Education in Sense and Experience The Lesson of Necessity Politics, Citizenship, and Philo-Sophie Rousseau’s Revolution 6 Adam Smith’s Sentimental Education Introduction A Civic Reading of the Wealth of Nations The Division of Labor Civic Character and the Division of Labor The Theory of Moral Sentiments: Sympathy as the “Essential Part” Sympathy, Variety of Experience, and Civic Character “Things Familiar to the Mind” 7 The Future of Character and Education Recovering the Lost Legacy of Liberal Learning and Civic Virtue Selected Bibliography Index