Blackwell Reference Online

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E thics, political philosophy the claim that society should train a group of pre-eminent individuals for positions of political leadership. The view was first elaborated by Plato in his Republic . He held that political power should be given to philosopherkings , who would be the wisest and most intelligent members of society. An elite of the best people would make laws and determine policy, but an elitist program faces many difficulties. First, unless there were indeed a special wisdom of political leadership, choosing an elite would be arbitrary. Secondly, if there were such wisdom, it would be necessary to identify those possessing it to receive a suitable education. Thirdly, there would be problems in installing these experts in ruling positions and in protecting their rule against those who see it as illegitimate. Finally, a procedure would be needed for the regular and peaceful replacement of members of the elite. Elitism seems incompatible with democratic liberalism , which promotes equality liberty and proposes that leadership should be elected from the general citizenry, but many liberal systems have chosen their political leadership from a privileged social and economic elite that has been educated for leadership. “To advance an elitist hypothesis today it is not enough merely to argue … that an elite always or usually exist and that they are probably of decisive ... log in or subscribe to read full text