Education as Glorious, Perpetual Revolution: Rousseau, Dewey, and Freire

Abstract

The daily increase of authoritarian leaders, totalitarian reforms, and nationalistic sen­timent worldwide creates an imperative even for those typically confined to the realm of theory to search for practicable solutions. With his characteristic flare for inconsistency and ostensible pessimism, Jean-Jacques Rousseau strikes even careful readers as a deadend in this regard. Nevertheless, Rousseau’s writings on civic education and civil religion provide an as-yet untapped resource, offering both a prescient diagnosis of our current predicament and realistic prescriptions as to how we might counteract it. And he is not alone: hitherto all but ignored by scholars, Rousseau’s thoughts on education bear a striking resemblance to those of John Dewey regarding experimental inquiry and Paolo Freire’s concerning liberatory pedagogy. For, though hailing from different continents and disparate traditions, all three emphasize that the slide towards tyranny is either ensured or prevented based on a people’s (in)ability to distinguish between nationalism and patriotism.

Department(s)

Political Science and Philosophy

Document Type

Article

DOI

10.5840/du202535330

Keywords

Civic education, civil religion, democracy, Dewey, experimental inquiry, Freire, liberatory pedagogy, nationalism, patriotism, Rousseau

Publication Date

1-1-2025

Journal Title

Dialogue and Universalism

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