Cultural Heritage and Contemporary Change Series VIA, Eastern and Central Europe, Volume 34 General Editor George F. McLean Civil Society, Pluralism and Universalism Polish Philosophical Studies, VIII by Eugeniusz Górski The Council for Research in Values and Philosophy Copyright © 2007 by The Council for Research in Values and Philosophy Box 261 Cardinal Station Washington, D.C. 20064 All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Górski, Eugeniusz. Civil society, pluralism, and universalism / by Eugeniusz Górski. p. cm. -- (Polish philosopical studies ; 8) (Cultural heritage and contemporary change. Series VIA, Central and Eastern Europe ; v. 34) Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Civil society--Case studies. 2. Pluralism (Social sciences)--Case studies. 3. Universalism--Case studies. I. Title. II. Series. JC337.G667 2007 2006102781 300.1--dc22 CIP ISBN 978-1-56518-241-7 (pbk.) Table of Contents Introduction 1 Part I. Civil Society in Eastern Europe, Latin America and Spain Chapter 1. Reflections on Civil Society 7 Antonio Gramsci’s Concept of Civil Society Gramsci in Italy and Worldwide From Marxism to Liberalism The Idea of Civil Society in Poland and East Central Europe Civil Society and Social Capital in Poland Chapter 2. The Idea of Civil Society in Russia 55 The Russian Tradition An Illusory Contribution of Perestroika The Present State and the Prospects for Civil Society Chapter 3. Civil Society and Democracy in Spain 73 From Francoism to Democracy The Process of Democratic Consolidation Theories of Democracy Problems of Civil Society The Crisis and Renovation of Social Democracy Part II. Parallel Ideas in the Democratic Transitions of Eastern Europe, Latin America and Spain Chapter 4. Problems of Democratic Transition and 99 Consolidation: Spain and Poland Spanish-Polish Parallelism Two Dictatorships Evolution towards Pluralism Two Negotiated Transitions Two Democracies Chapter 5. Eastern Europe and Latin America 115 in a Comparative and Universalistic Perspective Introductory Remarks Political Traditions iv Civil Society, Pluralism and Universalism The Idea of Central Europe Common Political and Philosophical Ideas Towards Universalism Chapter 6. Philosophy and Westernism 139 in Eastern Europe and Latin America The Aims and Object of Comparative Studies Messianism and Nihilism Nations, Societies and the Authenticity of Philosophy Westernism and the Question of Russia Poland in Europe Czechs and Hungarians The Balkan Question Latin America and the West Part III. Pluralism and Universalism Chapter 7. From “Socialist” to Postmodern Pluralism in Poland 171 Pluralism’s Position in Polish Social Change - Reflection and Articulation The Productive Naiveté of „Socialist” Pluralism Universal Truths and Postmodern Differences In Search of Poland’s Transcendent Pluralism Chapter 8. The Idea of Universalism in Poland and 193 in the Americas From Trentowski to Smolikowski The Interwar Period and the Second World War Modern Polish and American Universalism The Latin American Contribution Final Remarks Chapter 9. John Paul II – Christian and Civil Universalism 221 Is the Social Teaching of the Church Possible? Human Labor as Creation The Drama of the Contemporary World: Neither Collectivism nor Liberalism Christian Liberalism? Striving Towards a Synthesis of Conceptions of Societies About the Author 237 Index 239 Introduction The comparative essays and articles gathered and updated in this vol- ume were written in various times and under various occasions. They con- centrate on the ideas of civil society, democracy, pluralism and universalism in Poland, Central and Eastern Europe, Spain and Latin America. Although Poland has contributed considerably to the development of the civil society and to other above mentioned ideas, these essays show - against the dominant opinion - that the revival of the idea of civil society that has marked the last 25 years had earlier occurred in Italy and to some extent even in the neigh- boring Yugoslavia, among authors inspired by Antonio Gramsci, and also in Latin America, but not in Central Europe or the Anglo-Saxon world. The dif- ference in time, however, was not great, so rightly it can be argued that the idea appeared almost simultaneously in various parts of the world (Italy, Latin America and East Central Europe). It is worth noting that the influence of Gramsci in the discourse on civil society was initially greater than that of classical liberalism. The idea of civil society appeared broadly at the end of 1970s and in the 1980s in the political discourse of the Latin American Left and of the Central European democratic opposition. Both circles quite independently from each other and mutually rather hostile used the idea in repressive con- texts as a tool in their struggle for freedom and democracy against military, bureaucratic-authoritarian and totalitarian regimes in the two regions of the world. The idea of civil society presupposed a moral necessity of social defense against dictatorships, and an attempt to create and dominate an independent public opinion. Gramsci and his Western and South American followers saw in that peaceful conquering of the sphere of civil society an illusory chance for a socialism without bloody revolution. Similarly, the Central European dissi- dents saw in the gradual conquering of the alternative or parallel social sphere a chance for overthrowing without violence, or a deep reform, of communism. The Central European proponents of this kind of society were very ambigu- ous in their discourse on a third road, a non-political and ethical community. In that discourse it was difficult to differentiate between their personal views and Machiavellian camouflage. The democratic and workers’ revolution of Solidarity could not announce at the very beginning the need for a liberal and capitalist revolution. The spontaneously democratic ideology and phraseology of an inde- pendent civil society from Eastern Europe and Latin America, re-elaborated in Western countries, was later used with lesser effect in the struggle against African and Asian dictatorships. Since the end of 1989 the term civil society, repeated like a mantra, has become a name for human dreams, and a key ele- ment of the post-totalitarian and post cold war Zeitgeist. There are many definitions and conceptions of civil society. In the Polish scholarly literature civic, liberal, political, and communitarian inter- pretations have been identified, as well as republican, liberal and normative 2 Civil Society, Pluralism and Universalism conceptions. Eclectic interpretations, combining individualism with social solidarity and republican virtues, conflict with cooperation, are also abun- dant. The most recent research transcends the local or national conception of civil society confined within the boundaries of one state, and refers rather to a general idea of citizenship or globalization from below, to the European, inter-American, global and network civil society. After the collapse of com- munism the theme of civil society, “a renewed call for the redevelopment of civil society” has come and become fashionable, especially in Central and Eastern Europe.1 Manuel Castells has differentiated between two traditions in the in- terpretation of the concept of civil society: one stemming from John Locke, tradition of Anglo-Saxon liberalism and a Marxist-humanist tradition repre- sented by Antonio Gramsci. They cannot do without the concept of the state, but the state they referred to was a national state. Nowadays, however, in the epoch of globalization (embracing not only free trade, but also a globalization of human rights and a globalization of collective human activities) we are wit- nessing a crisis of the national state and of national democracy. So the process constituting present-day civil society reaches far beyond the national state. The crisis of the institution of the national state and of its surrounding civil society is a cause of the rise of new cultural identities and of a new civil soci- ety not so much connected with statehood. New organizations and alternative movements (ecological or human rights defenders) that are being created have easy access (thanks to the Internet) to information and communication. This gives great possibilities for human mobilization and for acting upon public opinion. According to Castells, a new global civil society is being constituted. Its aim is an affirmation of universal values and of new symbolic codes, as well as an offensive transformation of the state, of which Gramsci dreamt in an earlier epoch. It is interesting to see that the idea of civil society with some references to Gramsci is present in the rebellious movements in Argentina and Latin America. But the Gramscian categories are insufficient nowadays. The key concept of hegemony does not sufficiently take into account the links of a country with the world economy and international politics. A vision of a new universalism is embraced by the idea of a global civil society. Many authors dream of a new force that would speak for the planetary humankind, that would express the needs and dreams of over six billions of people and which would not act in the egoistic interest of particular nations. Such controlling counterpart against the United States can no longer be exercised by any nation or group of nations. Only the emerging global civic movement identified with the interests of the world community, can oppose US particularism.