Princìpi e valori della democrazia: i paradigmi differenti e complementari di Luigi Stefanini e Guido Calogero

This paper deals with the different theoretical approaches of Luigi Stefanini (1891-1956) and Guido Calogero (1904-1986) to the problem of democracy. Both philosophers experience the dictatorship of the fascist regime and in the postwar period reflect on the philosophical foundations of democracy. According to Stefanini, democratic life is ethically realized as “social personalism.” In the political order the human person must always be the fundamental reference value of the institutions. According to Calogero, democracy must be characterized by the method of dialogue and therefore by respect for other opinions. Calogero’s secular perspective and Stefanini’s Christian perspective find an important convergence in the two fundamental values of democracy: respect for the person and the method of dialogue. The two Italian philosophers also agree in emphasizing the limits of formal democracy theorized by the liberals and propose a vision of “substantial democracy” based on social justice: “social personalism” (Stefanini), “liberal-socialism” (Calogero). Stefanini’s and Calogero’s reflections on democracy, although developed in the 1940s and 1950s, show elements of surprising relevance and offers a useful philosophical orientation even in today’s context of a widespread crisis of democracy and its procedures.