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296

|305| That dispassionateness, rectitude, and courtesy of conduct should become custom, however, depends partly on the direct ethical and intellectual formation which holds the spiritual balance against whatever mechanism and the like is contained in the acquisition of the so-called sciences of the objects of these spheres, the requisite practice in business, real work, and so forth; and partly the size of the state is a principal factor, through which the weight of family and other private connections is weakened, and revenge, hatred, and other such passions become more powerless and hence more blunted; in occupation with the great interests present in the great state, these subjective sides sink away of themselves, and the habit of universal interests, views, and business is generated.

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  1. Hegel (Simple) Avatar
    Hegel (Simple)

    § 296: How Officials Become Good

    Officials should act without passion, justly and gently. How does this become a habit?

    First, through education. Ethical education and thinking balance out mere routine. Expert knowledge and practice alone make an official mechanical.

    Second, through the size of the state. In a large state, family ties and private connections count for less. Revenge and hatred lose their force. Whoever deals with great tasks gets used to universal interests.

    An image:

    In a village, the clerk knows everyone. He knows who once did him harm. In a large authority, this fades away. There the case counts, not the neighbor.

    Summary: Good conduct in officials comes from education and from the size of the state. In large settings, private passions lose their force.

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