“Noble Disquiet”: Possibilities and Problems in Constant’s Liberalism

• In Event: Late Modern Critiques of the Bourgeois

Abstract

Benjamin Constant is often seen as a defender of “negative” liberty, the sort fostered by limited government, minimal interference in trade, free speech, and religious toleration. It was this reputation that led Karl Marx to call him a “spokesman” of bourgeois society. However, an equally important aspect of Constant’s thought is his harsh critique of what we now call the bourgeoisie. Much like Rousseau before him and Tocqueville after him, Constant disparages the crude materialism, insensitivity to suffering, and cold rationalism of modern politics. This paper seeks to explain the relationship between the defense and the critique of modern life running through Constant’s thought. In particular, it focuses on his concern that modern politics would smother human beings’ “religious sentiment.” By exploring how Constant’s liberalism aspired not only to ensure freedom and security, but also to encourage this “noble disquiet,” the paper tries to bring out what may be most attractive in his approach and what difficulties may be inherent in it.

Author

• Nathan Davis, Loyola University Maryland