On The Relationship Between Citizen And State Under The Principle Of Popular Sovereignty

The topic of the thesis is the relationship between citizen and state under the principle ofpopular sovereignty, the keyword of the topic is citizen, because the state consists of thecitizens. The character and the way of combination of the citizen result in the nature ofpopular sovereignty. The cognition of the citizen has to go back to the cognition of man. Themethod to research the nature of man is observation, analysis and hypothesis which is basedon the former.The understanding of man to Jean-Jacques Rousseau embodies in his early writing:Discourse on the Origin and Foundations of Inequality among Men. In this writing Rousseauresearches the nature of man from making a distinction between the natural state and socialstate. In Rousseau’s opinion, the nature of man is good under the natural state, man livesfreely on the effect of self-love and pity. In addition, man has the natural virtue which is thesource of morality. In a word, man is a whole individual in the natural state. But due to theperfectibility of man, the desire of man develops with the development of intelligence. Thedesire finally results in the vanity and greed of man. The process of development betweendesire and intelligence is the process of socialization of man. The more the man be addict toand pursue the desire and greed, the more he will become self-interest, and the more he willpursue the fortune and power intensively without through right method. In this way Strongand Weak and Rich and Poor finally come into being in the society. Autocracy is based onthis society which is an inequality society. Rousseau criticizes the inequality severely.Rousseau concludes that man is naturally good and his wickedness is caused by society.Based on the thought Rousseau wants to construct a political institution which supersedes theinequality of intelligence between men by the equality in politics between men and realizeseach man’s happiness through protecting each one’s right and liberty.The institution comes into being with the social contract that is combined by each manwho has taken part in the combination. Through the social contract each one has thecitizenship. The understanding of citizen of Rousseau is based on his understanding of man.In Rousseau’s opinion the citizen is equal, free and has virtue. They come from one nationand have common civilization knowing each other and living friendly. The citizens combineto a body by social contract, the body is state. The aim of the state is for each man’s happiness. When the state is born, the common wills of citizens changes into the general will. Thegeneral will proclaims the rights of citizens through making laws. The rights include the rightof pursuing freedom, the right of having a life in one’s own culture and the right of protectingthe safety of property and so on. Meanwhile, the general will declares the duty of citizen forother citizen and state through making the laws. The government shows his competency byenforcing the laws and makes the laws into realization. When the government does somethingthat is seriously opposite to his competency, it will obviously lose his character. And at thismoment the people proclaims the will of sovereign again through assembling. At the time theenforcement of law of the government has not any legal effect. The action of making laws andthe essential supervise for the enforcement of law of the government are the reflection ofpopular sovereignty. Popular sovereignty essentially is that all the power comes from thepeople. And the interests that come from the power obviously return to the people. Naturally,popular sovereignty makes sure that the citizen has a positive role in the political life of state.In a word, under the principle of popular sovereignty the citizen and the state both have abenign and positive movement. The citizen is the individual of the state and the state is thewhole of the citizen. On the one side the citizen finally finds his traditional and moral return,on the other side the state ensures the freedom of the citizen. As a political and moral body,the state guides and moulds its citizens.