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36
HowardWilliams
eignbody,subjectionmayprecedetheriseofindependentcitizenship.Butsince
inworldpoliticscitizenshipalreadyexistsalthoughwelackacommonsover-
eignwhateverstepstowardworldpeacearemadehavetobetakenunderthe
presuppositionofindependence.Weareboundtoseektoattainuniversalciti-
zenshipnotthroughacontractthatwecanregardasalreadyforgedbutthrough
anobligationwehavetoattainsuchananalogouspositioninworldpolitics.The
classicalsocialcontracthaswithKantanobligatoryforeignclause,whichre-
quiresustoseektobringaboutbyvoluntarymeansaworldsocialcontractfor
auniversalcivilsociety.
Kantisveryfirmabouthowthisuniversalcivilsocietyistobebrought
about.Itcannotoccurthroughinterventionbyonepeopleintheaffairsof
another.Changehastocomegraduallyfromthetopdown:“Shouldthegood
intheworld(thecosmopolitan)startfromtheeducation(up-bringing)ofthe
subjectsi.e.fromthepeopleorfromthegovernmentwhichfirstimproves
itself.Thefirstprinciplebeginsfromtheclashofopinionsasfromthebottom
up,fromwhichnothingdecent(ordentlich)canbeestablished.Thusonlyfrom
thetopdown.”
20Inotherwords“theolddespoticpossession(Besitz)remains
andwillgraduallytransformintoasystemoffreedomonlywhentheprinci-
plesarewellgrasped/understood.”
21Kantenvisagesthisgradualchangecom-
ingaboutthroughacontinuousconflictbetweenpoliticsandmorality.Histori-
callypoliticalascendancyhasbeengainedbymeansweshouldnolonger
countenance,asmoral,butpoliticalpowerisbothnecessaryandmoral.But
theinheritedformsoftheacquisitionofpowerhavecontinuallytobere-
formedtobringtheminlinewiththeidealofcivil,republicangovernment.
“Inordertoformastate(intheconditionofpeaceasajuridicalstateofaf-
fairs)thefounderandthelawmakeroughtbothtohaveagoodwilltosubmit
themselvestothelaw(ortopositionthemselvesunderthelaw).Butwheredo
wegetthesewills?Theytoohavetobecoerced.”
22HereKantseemstoenvisage
aroleforthesocialsciences,becausehementions“financial,policeanddefence
science”asapossiblemeansofbridgingthegapbetweentheidealofpeaceand
therealityofhumanbehaviour.Theyareseenasalternativestoradicalpolitical
measures.WitheventsinFrancesurelyinmindKantstatescategorically:“No
revolution”.Sincetheconditionofperpetualpeaceasajuridicalstateofaffairs
is“apureideaforwhichwedoindeedhaveprinciplesforcarryingouttheob-
ject,whichishoweversupersensuousandcanonlybethoughtthroughbyap-
proximationaccordingtoaregulativeprinciple.”
23
IndiscussingindependenceKantisdealingnotonlywithHobbes’spolitical
philosophybutalsowiththeFrenchRevolution.Independenceisnotonlycon-
trastedwithHobbes’sviewofusasfreeonlyassubjectsbutalsowiththe
Frenchrevolutionaries’callforuniversalbrotherhood.Independenceisnotseen
20Kant,WerkeVIII,p.140.
21Ibidem.
22Kant,WerkeVIII,p.141.
23Ibidem.
