• In an elitist political theory, the distinction between elites and masses is fundamental.

• The main problems are discussed in terms of the diverse relationships between elites and masses.

• One of the most important relationships is the influx of members from the masses into the elites, or the openness of elites to individuals from the masses, or the renewal of elites with elements from the masses.

• This relationship provides the content and meaning for the special concept of democracy accepted by both Mosca and Gramsci, contrasting with aristocracy.

• However, the democratic relationship is not the only important one.

• Another important relationship is what Mosca calls the liberal relationship, where authority flows from the bottom up, originating in the masses.

• This is the opposite of autocracy, where authority flows from the top down.

Varieties of Liberty and Liberalism in Mosca

• The anti-autocratic principle is not the only concept Mosca associates with liberty and liberalism.

• Mosca’s most mature view on liberal systems is found in the second volume of Elements of Political Science.

• In such systems, the law is based on the consent of the majority of citizens, although only a small fraction of the population may be citizens.

• Officials applying the law are named directly or indirectly by their subordinates, with temporary positions and personal responsibility for the lawfulness of their acts.

• In liberal states, citizens delegate legislative power to assemblies, which are named directly or indirectly by them.

• Bureaucracy coordinates and supplements the work of elective officials.

• The state recognizes limits to its powers in relation to individual citizens and associations, such as freedom of worship, press, education, assembly, and speech.

• A liberal system is one where authority flows from the ruled to the rulers in the following ways:

  • The law is based on the consent of citizens, though citizens may not be identical to the ruled.

  • Popular sovereignty validates the law, differing from the idea that the law is an expression of the people’s will, as there is no unified popular will.

  • Both officials who apply and make the law are chosen by the ruled in a representative system.

  • The law guarantees civil liberties that cannot be violated by governors, legislators, or bureaucrats.

• Universal suffrage is not essential but not excluded.

• Popular sovereignty is the defining characteristic of a liberal system, while representation and civil liberties are practically necessary concomitants.

• These three elements (popular sovereignty, representation, civil liberties) are conceptually distinct but interconnected.

• Mosca believes the idea of political liberty originated in ancient Greece and Rome, was elaborated by Guicciardini, and developed in the English parliamentary system.

• The phrase “free people” refers to a people who govern themselves.

• Political liberty depends on the separation of powers, which in turn derives from a balanced pluralism of social forces and elites.

• Separation of powers can be seen as the intermediate ground, and pluralism as the ultimate ground for political liberty.

• The term liberalism can sometimes lead to terminological confusion due to its varying meanings.

• Liberalism can refer to either the separation of powers or the balanced pluralism of social and political forces.

• Mosca occasionally uses “liberalism” with these distinct meanings, but the usage is usually clear, and a careful reader can distinguish between them.

• A famous example of Mosca’s liberalism is his 1904 interview, where he defines himself as “antidemocratic because liberal”.

• Mosca argues that he opposes pure democracy because he is a liberal, believing that the ruling class should not be monolithic but should consist of diverse elements from different origins and interests.

• Pure democracy refers to a political system where authority originates from a single source, such as elections with universal suffrage, which Mosca sees as dangerous and potentially oppressive.

• Mosca criticizes democratic Jacobinism for subordinating everything to a single force (the majority), without setting any limits on it.

• He believes there are important political forces that might not prevail in popular elections but should not be suppressed from exercising political action.

• For Mosca, liberalism means allowing a plurality of methods for selecting rulers and allowing diverse political forces to emerge.

• Sometimes, liberalism is used to mean specifically the doctrine of civil liberties, with emphasis on individual freedoms.

• Mosca also uses “liberalism” in this sense, for example, in his 1917 essay discussing rationing versus price increases for foodstuffs.

• In this essay, he argues that rationing is more egalitarian but that price increases are more liberal because they give individuals greater choice, even though both have different utilitarian impacts.

• Mosca’s theory of political liberty is inconsistent with some conceptions of democracy (like Jacobinist pure democracy) but overlaps with others (such as the Moschian conception).

• Mosca recognizes the Platonian concept of democracy, which emphasizes popular sovereignty and representation, but prefers his own terminological framework.

• The overlap between Platonic democracy and Moschian liberalism can create confusion, but it is important not to ignore such terminological ambiguities.

• Mosca’s liberalism consists of six parts:

  1. Anti-autocratic conception of authority flowing from the bottom up.

  2. Popular sovereignty in the specified sense.

  3. The representative system.

  4. The doctrine of civil liberties.

  5. The separation of powers.

  6. Balanced pluralism.

• Gramsci’s approach to liberty is more complex than his views on elitism and democracy, which have clearer meanings in Mosca’s work.

• To explore the connection between Gramsci and Mosca on liberty, we must examine whether Gramsci shares a similar complexity and determine whether his attitude is favorable or unfavorable.