If one’s “conscience” refers to one’s awareness or focus, then there doesn’t seem to be much space or time in this campaign for a “civic conscience.” Still, we need a clear call to a civic conscience, which neither candidate is making.
In Sheldon Wolin’s classic book on political theory, Politics and Vision, he concludes his arguments with the call: “In the era of Superpower, the task is to nurture the civic conscience of society.”
What we are aware of, pay attention to, what we see, as well as what escapes our attention, or is beyond our grasp, depends on the “world” in which we live. So, the first thing we can say is that a person acquires a civic conscience by living in the world of the civic, which is different from the world of economics or even the world of sports.
If we say that a civic conscience is like a civic perspective, then how does one acquire a particular perspective? By living in a particular world. In a capitalistic world, for example, one looks at things from one’s self-interest. What’s in it for me? A civic perspective is quite different. It looks at things not as a dealer or trader, but as a citizen—a member of the civic. Wolin describes citizenship as follows:
. . . citizenship provides what the other roles [in society] cannot, namely an integrative experience which brings together the multiple role-activities of the contemporary person and demands that the separate roles be surveyed from a more general point of view. It means further that effort be made to restore the political art as that art which strives for an integrative form of direction, one that is broader than that supplied by any group or organization. It means finally that political theory must once again be viewed as that form of knowledge which deals with what is general and integrative to men, (sic) a life of common involvement.
p. 389.
The civic perspective, in other words, looks at society from the perspective of commonality. When we take on the role of citizen, we examine social conflicts and movements, even economic developments, in terms of their role in moving all of us toward a shared future.
A civic perspective, in other words, looks at the economy in terms of our common-wealth. We are all contemporaries. This is our time. The purpose of the economy is to effectively and carefully harvest what the earth provides and then to transform these gifts into provisions for our communities.
Most of the time our perspectives emerge from our work and friendship relationships, our organizations and communities and our educational institutions: the different worlds we live in. Every once in a while, there is a call to consciously look at things from a civic perspective. One of those days is certainly the day we vote for those who represent us, who represent us as democratic citizens.
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