Our America

Walt Whitman wrote in his “Democratic Vistas,” that democracy can be described as “some sort of younger brother to another great and often-used word, Nature, whose history waits unwritten.”  In that sense, Democracy is not only a form of government, but also a way of life, transforming and changes throughout time, shaped by the people who are affected by it.  This can be seen the United States today, in the nation as a whole, and on an individual level.  

While the United States does not adhere to the concept of a direct democracy, the United States’ system of government has come to be accepted as the embodiment of “democratic ideals.”  As Whitman states in his essay, Democracy in its first stage is the physical structure of government, including our Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, and laws which help to protect suffrage for United States Citizens.  This framework allows “the people” to participate in, and create the government which makes decisions affecting their lives.  Instead of a feudal system, monarchy, or oligarchy, the American Democracy seeks to give citizens ownership of their lives, while protecting against a tyranny of the majority.  Furthermore, it creates the processes by which citizens can push for further change to the current system.  This has kept the idea of Democracy a living, evolving concept from the drafting of the Constitution to the present day.  On the surface this construct is highly positive, empowering citizens to be engaged in government, viewing it less as an imposition and more as a system which has the potential to affect daily life.   However, in the American system of a democratic republic, this positive aspect can be lost due to the separation between the legislative body and constituents.  Many Americans feel as if their suffrage is of little value, as “one vote doesn’t count.”  They also view the processes for change as tedious and ineffective, as lawmakers cannot be mirror representations of all of their constituents, and the judicial system as well as the right to petition are slow to yield change.   Nevertheless, Whitman’s first stage of democracy sets the groundwork for both citizen participation in their government as well as, idealistically, educated decision making at the executive, legislative, and judicial levels. 

Some may say that the “best” aspect of Democracy is the ability to give citizens access to their own government.  However, beyond the literal constructs of Democracy, perhaps the most profound effect of Democracy is what Whitman would describe as its third stage, a collective “spirit” that rises from Democracy and gives shape to a national identity, culture, and ultimately individual lives.  The ultimate effect of living under “American Democracy” is to endow those who live under its banner a sense of certain values. Not all will believe or follow said values, but as Whitman implies in “Democratic Vistas” the spirit of Democracy is accessible for all who rise to its standards.  To Whitman, these values included the concepts of literature and the infinite, but for many Americans today, democratic values are less concrete and more a part of a culture which arises in the simple act of living in America.  For many, when asked what it means to be American, words and phrases such as “freedom,” “equality,” “individualism,” and “participatory government,” are the first to be spoken.  They are often followed by “hamburger” and “television,” but these are nevertheless cultural aspects which are derived from an American sense of the former values.  Throughout history, Americans have taken the founding constructs of their government and moved forward with determination of a better life, in turn building a culture and system of values which are now defining aspects of American Democracy, making its citizens, by name and by nature, American.

Democracy will never be a word that is easy to define, for its very definition is as vast as the populous who attempts to define it.   With its existence come questions that cannot be answered, but can only be pondered and explored throughout time.  Americans and other citizens of the world can only seek to refine the balance between the concrete and the mental stages of Democracy, for it is in its ambiguity that the concept of Democracy holds its power as a shaper of nations and of lives.