论人性观与政治体制设计

Human Nature & Political System Design

人是社会活动最基本的要素 ,政府是治理社会的权威组织 ,因此政治体制的设计离不开对人性的认识 ,离不开政治思想的支持。纵观西方思想家关于人性的论述 ,我们不难发现他们是在认定人性具有欲望、私念的前提下来对政治制度进行设计的。一方面 ,他们认为人性中有不完善的一面 ,因此在政治体制的设计上应充分考虑到这一点 ,使政治体制能抑恶扬善 ;人性有弱点 ,为避免它对社会造成损害 ,必须对权力加以制约。另一方面 ,要充分利用人性的弱点 ,化害为利 。

Because of the facts that human being is the fundament al factor of social activities, and that government is the authority organization of administering the society, political system can’t be designed without the un derstanding of human nature and the support of political thought. From various e xpositions on human nature by western thinkers, it is not very difficult for us to discover such a fact that they have been designing the political system basin g on the premise that human being is of lust and selfishness. On the one hand, t hey think that two aspects on human nature must be considered while designing po litical system. One is its imperfection, which must be considered to make design ed political system to practice the function to curb the evil and promote the go od, and the other is its weak points, which suggests that the power must be rest rained so as to avoid its harm to the society. On the other hand, they think tha t one must make full use of its weakness to turn its harm into the good, and ser ve the society.