A Reader's Guide to Bastiat's The Law (June 1850)

A Reader’s Guide to Bastiat’s The Law (June 1850)

By David M. Hart

Revised: 25 Oct., 2017
Online: <davidmhart.com/liberty>
The Bastiat Project on the OLL: <oll.libertyfund.org/pages/bastiat-project-summary>

“And what is ”Liberty“, this word that has the power of making all hearts beat faster and shaking up the world, if it is not the sum of all the freedoms — freedom of conscience, teaching, and association, freedom of the press, freedom to travel, work, and trade, in other words, the free exercise by everybody of all their harmless (non-violent) faculties. And, in still other terms, isn’t (Liberty) the destruction of all forms of despotism, even legal despotism, and limiting the law to its sole rational function which is to supervise the individual’s right to legitimate self-defence or to suppress injustice?” [“The Law”, CW2, p. 133]

The Historical Context
His purpose in writing "The Law"
The Text and Some Discussion Questions
Some Questions and Definitions given by FB
Selected Passages

The Historical Context

second last thing he wrote:
- FB knew he was dying and only had a few months to live; in chronic pain;
- took leave of absence from Chamber of Deputies 9 Feb. 1850;
- left Paris for spa town in Pyrenees summer 1850 where he wrote “The Law” (June) and WSWNS (July); is this a final “cri du coeur” (cry from the heart)?;
- final farewell to colleagues in Paris Sept 1850
rise of socialism during February 1848 Revolution:
- socialists able to organise mass demonstrations in the streets;
- after Feb. 1848 revolution Louis Blanc and friends seized control of Luxembourg Palace to set up National Workshops program Feb. 1848; taxpayer funded employment program (1st attempt to create socialist system in France? Europe?);
- vigorously opposed by FB as VP of the Chamber’s Finance Committee, and in the press
- attempted coup in May 1848 in Chamber by armed Blanc supporters (FB one of few to defend him);
- FB and friends on the street handing out their newspaper Jacques Bonhomme during June Days rioting to protest closing of National Workshops; caught in crossfire by army (thousands killed and arrested)
- “socialism from below” stamped out by political repression (martial law and censorship) by mid–1849
continued appeal of socialist ideas to those in power (politicians, bureaucrats, intellectuals) - “socialism from above” - might explain his attention to socialist writers in “The Law”

His purpose in writing “The Law”

to continue his long campaign against socialism which began with “Propriété et loi” (Property and Law) (May 1848); and would eventually include 14 titles (“The Law” was the second last and 13th of his “Petits pamphlets” (little pamphlets) published by the Guillaumin firm
directed to politicians, bureaucrats, intellectuals not man-in-the-street as he had in Feb. and June 1848 with JB
his final opportunity to address topics which had concerned him for several years and which he planned to discuss in greater depth in his unfinished book/s on Social Harmonies and History of Plunder, such as
- natural law vs. man-made or govt.-made law
- the proper, very limited purposes/functions of govt.
- the just use of force against others
- the fatal weaknesses of socialism (government regulation of the economy and private life) (his “Public Choice” analysis of government)
- the constant temptation to misuse the power of the state to satisfy the needs of vested interests (plunder)
- his taxonomy of plunder, especially his idea of “la spoliation légale” (legal or government sanctioned or initiated plunder)
- his theory of class based upon the conflict between “la classe spoliatrice” (the plundering class) and “les classes spoliatrices” (the plundered classes)
- the “causes perturbatrices” (disturbing factors) which upset the harmony of the free market and lead to suffering, injustice, and inequality
- his broad understanding of Liberty (with a capital “L”) as the sum of many smaller freedoms (with a lower case “f”), and thus not just narrow “political” or “economic” freedom

The Text and Some Discussion Questions

The text is divided into 5 sections. We asked people to read sections 1, 2, 4, and 5 in preparation for the discussion. Page numbers refer to LF’s edition of his Collected Works, vol. 2 (CW2).

The Collected Works of Frédéric Bastiat. Vol. 2: The Law, The State, and Other Political Writings, 1843-1850, Jacques de Guenin, General Editor. Translated from the French by Jane Willems and Michel Willems, with an introduction by Pascal Salin. Annotations and Glossaries by Jacques de Guenin, Jean-Claude Paul-Dejean, and David M. Hart. Translation Editor Dennis O'Keeffe. Academic Editor, David M. Hart (Indianapolis: Liberty Fund, 2012). <http://oll.libertyfund.org/titles/2450>. The Law <http://oll.libertyfund.org/titles/2450#lf1573-02_label_197>.

Some of the quotations listed below have been slightly revised from the online version.

Overarching question to ask ourselves:

Does a French economist writing in 1850 have anything of relevance to say to us today?

Introduction on law, property, government (CW2, pp. 107–9)

what is the law? where does it come from?
what comes first, law and property, or government?
what is the purpose of government? how powerful should it be?
when is it legitimate to use force against a person? by whom?
how can the governmment’s power be limited and kept limited?

Perversion of the law and plunder (CW2, pp. 109–22)
- how does the proper function of law become perverted?
- what is plunder? what different forms does it take?
- what is “legal” plunder?
- what does he mean by “unthinking egoism and false philanthropy”? what is their connection to legal plunder?
- can a society or government exist without the existence of plunder?
- what is FB’s theory of “class” and “class exploitation”? isn’t this a Marxist idea?
Historical survey of the ideas of socialist writers (Bossuet, Fénélon, Montesquieu (not a socialist), Rousseau, Raynal, Mably, Condillac, Robespierre, Billaud-Varennes, Le Peletier) (CW2, pp. 122–36)
- what problems in society concern the socialists mentioned by FB?
- what do the socialists think caused these problems?
- why do they think only the state can solve these problems? and how?
- what objections to this does FB raise? are they reasonable objections?
- what explanation does FB give for the existence of these problems? what is his solution?
Discussion of Louis Blanc’s influential work L’Organisation du travail (1839) (CW2, pp. 136–41)
- how do the socialist planners/regulators of society overcome the inherent weakness of all men, i.e. “ignorance, greed, inertia”
- are they, as they seem to assume, infallible and more intelligent than ordinary people?
- is the law “omnipotent” and able to solve all these problems?
- can free people solve their own problems? or do they need outside help?
- if so, what form should this outside help take?
Concluding section (CW2, pp. 141–46)
- what ultimately is FB’s understanding of what “law” and “justice” is?
- is he optimistic or pessimistic about the future? why?
- what solution does he provide to solve society’s problems?
- is this believable? is it relevant to today?

Some Questions and Definitions given by FB

Key questions posed by FB:

“What is the law? What ought it to be? What domain does it cover? What are its limits? Consequently, where do the functions of the legislator cease?” [CW2, p. 142]

His definition of the Law:

“the Law is solely the organization of the pre-existing individual right of legitimate (self)-defense.” [CW2, p. 142]

His definition of freedom:

“And what is ”Liberty“, this word that has the power of making all hearts beat faster and shaking up the world, if it is not the sum of all the freedoms — freedom of conscience, teaching, and association, freedom of the press, freedom to travel, work, and trade, in other words, the free exercise by everybody of all their harmless (non-violent) faculties. And, in still other terms, isn’t (Liberty) the destruction of all forms of despotism, even legal despotism, and limiting the law to its sole rational function which is to supervise the individual’s right to legitimate self-defence or to suppress injustice?” [CW2, p. 133]

Passages from Part 1: Intro on law, property, government (pp. 107–9)

[p. 107] It is not because men have enacted Laws that personhood, freedom, and property exist. On the contrary, it is because personhood, freedom, and property are already in existence that men enact laws.
What is the law, then? As I have said elsewhere, it is the collective organization of the individual right of legitimate (self) defense.

[p. 108] Thus, since the (use of) force by an individual cannot legitimately be used against the person, freedom, or property of another individual, by the same argument, the common force cannot legitimately be used to destroy the person, freedom, or property of either individuals or classes.

Passages from Part 2: Perversion of the law and plunder (pp. 109–22)

[p. 109] It has placed the collective force at the disposal of those who wish to exploit the Person, Freedom, or the Property of others without risk (to themselves) and without any scruples, it has converted plunder into (a) right in order to protect it and legitimate (self) defense into (a) crime in order to punish it.

[p. 109] The law has become perverted under the influence of two very different causes: unthinking egoism and false philanthropy.

[p. 110] However, in practice, he can live and enjoy life by assimilating or appropriating to himself the product of the faculties of his fellow men. From this comes Plunder.

[p. 110] Therefore when plunder is organized by law for the profit of the classes that make it, all the plundered classes attempt to have a say in the making of the laws, by either peaceful or revolutionary means. Depending on the level of enlightenment which they have attained, these classes may set themselves two very different aims when they pursue the conquest of their political rights; they may either wish to stop legal plunder or they may aspire to take part in it.

[p. 115] But what form of plunder does he mean? For there are two forms. There is extra-legal plunder (plunder outside the law) and legal plunder.

[p. 117] It is absolutely necessary for this question of legal plunder to be settled and there are just three alternatives:
That the few plunders the many;
That everyone plunders everyone else;
That nobody plunders anybody.
You have to choose between partial plunder, universal plunder, and the absence of] plunder. The law can pursue only one of these three alternatives.
Partial plunder – this is the system that prevailed for as long as the electorate was partial and is the system to which people return to avoid the invasion of socialism.
Universal plunder – this is the system that threatened us when the electorate became universal with the masses having conceived the idea of making laws along the same lines as their legislative predecessors.
Absence of plunder–this is the principle of justice, peace, order, stability, conciliation, and common sense that I will proclaim with all my strength, which is, alas, very inadequate, and with my lungs until my final breath.

[p. 118] When a portion of wealth passes from the person who has acquired it, without his consent and without compensation, to one who has not created it, whether this is by force or fraud, I say that there has been a violation of property (rights) and that there is (an act of) plunder.

[p. 120] Perhaps he should ask himself whether such a state of society has not been caused by former (acts of) plunder carried out by conquest and by present (acts of) plunder carried out by means of the law.

Passages from Part 3: Historical survey of the ideas of socialist writers (pp. 122–36)

[p. 122] Modern political writers, particularly those of the socialist school, base their various theories on a common, and definitely the strangest and most arrogant, hypothesis that the human brain has ever devised.
They divide humanity into two parts. All men, minus one, form the first (part) and the political writer, all on his own, forms the second and by far the most important part.

His definition of freedom: [p. 133] And what is freedom, this word that has the power of making all hearts beat faster and causing agitation around the world, if it is not the sum of all freedoms? — freedom of conscience, teaching, and association, freedom of the press, freedom to travel, work, and trade, in other words, the free exercise of all harmless faculties by all men.

Passages from Part 4: On Louis Blanc’s book (pp. 136–41)

[p. 138] ... the doctrine based on this triple hypothesis, the radical inertia of humanity, the omnipotence of the Law, and the infallibility of the Legislator, is the sacred cow of the party that proclaims itself exclusively democratic.

[pp. 139–40] Since the natural tendencies of man are sufficiently bad for their freedom to have to be removed, how is it that those (tendencies) of the organizers are good? Are the Legislators and their agents not part of the human race? Do they think they are formed from a different clay from the rest of mankind? They state that society, if left to itself, rushes inexorably toward the abyss because its instincts are perverse. They claim to be able to stop it on this slope and redirect it to a better goal. They have therefore received from heaven a level of intelligence and virtues that place them outside and above humanity; let them show the justification for this. They wish to be shepherds and want us to be sheep. This arrangement assumes that they have superior natures, and we have every right to demand prior proof of this.

[p. 140] For, apart from the fact that it is oppressive and plunderous, the call for bringing in the government and (higher) taxes implies once again this damaging hypothesis, the infallibility of the organizer, and the incompetence of humanity.

Passages from Part 5: Conclusion (pp. 141–46)

[p. 142] What is the law? What ought it to be? What domain does it cover? What are its limits? Consequently, where do the functions of the legislator cease?

[p. 142] ... the Law is solely the organization of the pre-existing individual right of legitimate (self)-defense.

[p. 145] ... all things to be achieved through man’s free and perfectible spontaneous action, within the limits of of the law; nothing (done) by the law or by force other than universal justice.

[p. 145] It has to be said: there are too many great men in the world. There are too many legislators, organizers, founders of societies, leaders of peoples, fathers of nations, etc. etc. Too many people put themselves above humanity in order to rule it and too many people make it their job to become involved with it.