Explain Useless Laws Weaken the Necessary Laws

Second, monarchical and republican governments include specific government structures and require their citizens to have certain types of motivation. When these structures collapse or these motivations fail, monarchical and republican governments are corrupt, and the result of their corruption is that they fall into despotism. But when a particular despotic government falls, it is usually not replaced by a monarchy or republic. The creation of a stable monarchy or republic is extremely difficult: “a masterpiece of legislation, rarely produced by danger and rarely achieved by prudence” (SL 5:14). This is especially difficult when those who should both shape and live according to the laws of such a government have already been brutalized and degraded by despotism. On the other hand, forming a despotic government is relatively simple. Despotism requires no careful balance of power, no institutions to create and maintain, no complicated motivations to promote, and no restrictions on power to maintain. All you have to do is frighten your fellow citizens so that you can impose your will on them; and that, according to Montesquieu, “this is what any capacity can achieve” (SL 5:14). For these reasons, despotism necessarily has a different relationship to corruption than other forms of government: while they are sensitive to corruption, despotism is its embodiment.

Understanding our laws will also help us identify which aspects of them really need reform and how those reforms can be achieved. Montesquieu believes, for example, that the laws of many countries can be made more liberal and humane, and that they can often be applied less arbitrarily, with fewer opportunities for unpredictable and oppressive use of state power. Similarly, religious persecution and slavery can be abolished and trade encouraged. These reforms would generally strengthen monarchical governments because they would strengthen the freedom and dignity of citizens. If legislators understand the relationship between laws, on the one hand, and the conditions of their country and the principles of their governments, on the other, they will be in a better position to carry out such reforms without undermining the governments they want to improve. The Persian Letters is both one of the funniest books by a major philosopher and one of the darkest. It presents both virtue and self-knowledge as almost inaccessible. Almost all Europeans in Persian letters are ridiculous; most of those who are not seem to serve only as spokesmen for Montesquieu`s own views. Rica is gracious and in a good mood, but this is mainly because his virtue, since he has no responsibility, has never been seriously tested. Despite all the apparent enlightenment and humanity of the Uzbek, he turns out to be a monster whose cruelty brings him no happiness, as he realizes himself, even when he decides to inflict it. His eunuchs, who could not hope for freedom or happiness, learned to love torturing their protégés, and his wives widely professed love while planning intrigues.

The only admirable character in the novel is Roxana, but the social institutions of Persia make her life unbearable: she is separated from the man she loves and forced to live in slavery. Their suicide is presented as a noble act, but also as an indictment against the despotic institutions that make it necessary. Religion can help mitigate the effects of bad laws and institutions; This is the only thing that can serve as a control of despotic power. According to Montesquieu, however, it is usually a mistake to base civil laws on religious principles. Religion aims at the perfection of the individual; Civil laws are aimed at the well-being of society. Given these different objectives, what these two legislative packages should require will often be different; for this reason, religion “is not always to serve as the first principle of civil law” (SL 26:9). Civil laws are not an appropriate tool for applying religious norms of behavior: God has His own laws, and He is quite capable of applying them without our help. When we try to apply God`s laws for Him or present ourselves as His protectors, we make our religion an instrument of fanaticism and oppression; it is neither a service to God nor to our country. Some regulations make it easier for the three powers to be controlled.

Montesquieu argues that only the legislator should have the power to tax, since he can then withdraw funds from the executive if he tries to impose his will arbitrarily. Similarly, the executive should have a veto over the actions of the legislature, and the legislature should be composed of two chambers, each of which can prevent the actions of the other from becoming law. The judiciary should be independent of the legislative and executive branches, and should limit itself to applying laws to specific cases in a firm and consistent manner, so that “the judiciary, so terrible for humanity. becomes invisible, so to speak,” and people “fear office, but not the judge” (SL 11:6). In despotic states, “one person directs everything by his own will and mood” (SL 2:1). Without laws that control him, and without having to worry about someone who disagrees with him, a despot can do whatever he wants, no matter how misguided or reprehensible he may be. His subjects are no better than slaves, and he can get rid of them as he sees fit. The principle of despotism is fear.

This fear is easy to maintain, because the situation of the subjects of a despot is really frightening. Education is useless in despotism; If it exists, it should be designed to humiliate the mind and break the spirit. Ideas such as honor and virtue should not come to the minds of a despot`s subjects, for “people who can value themselves would likely cause trouble. Fear must therefore cool their mood and extinguish the slightest ambition” (SL 3:9). Their “part here, like that of animals, is instinct, obedience, and punishment” (SL 3:10), and any higher aspiration should be brutally discouraged. Montesquieu`s goal in L`Esprit des Lois is to explain human laws and social institutions. This may seem like an impossible project: unlike the physical laws established and maintained by God according to Montesquieu, positive laws and social institutions are created by fallible people who are “subjugated.” .