Explain Steiner’s teachings about human psychology. What are the differences between threefold, fourfold, and sevenfold human nature? How does the evolutionary dimension enter in?
The threefold social order
Steiner’s Three Main Texts on the threefold Social Order: The Threefold Social Order (1919)
Steiner’s Three Main Texts on 3fold Social Order: The Renewal of the Social Organism (1919 & 1920)
Steiner’s Three Main Texts on 3fold Social Order: rethinking Economics (1922)
The Great Dilemma of Modern Social Thought: Freedom vs. Equality
The two great competing modern systems, classical liberalism (18th and 19th c. capitalism) and socialism (19th c.; many precursors to Marxism), each try to maximize one at the expense of the other:
Capitalism maximizes freedom, and hopes that the “invisible hand” of the market will maximize utility for all. What about justice?: “A rising tide lifts all boats.” / “Make the pie bigger.” / “Trickle-down economics.”
Socialism/Communism maximizes equality by limiting freedom. Centralization of the means of production; state control of education, etc. Squelches initiative, destroys freedom. Anathema.
How to resolve this dilemma of freedom and justice??? Steiner has a complex answer. Not a simple social program. Not the letter, but the spirit.
Like Steiner’s view of ethics in the second half of The Philosophy of Freedom: individual intuitions out of insight.
“Threefolding”: Liberty, Equality, Altruism
Steiner: these really are the three great principles of social life. Inspired, but not fully understood. Hence the French Revolution went astray.
Steiner: one has to understand the meaning of each, and especially that each applies to a different sphere (cf. Kant: freedom and necessity are both valid, but in different realms).
Liberte = “Spiritual-cultural Sphere”
In classical liberalism (19c), “freedom” is associated with the economic sphere. Democracy not appropriate here [!] Nor cooperation. Rather, the principle that belongs here is the one the classical liberalism associates most closely with economics: competition! Ideas should compete; let the best idea win!
Schools, churches, museums, universities, and hospitals belong here. They should be shielded as much as possible from political and economic forces.
Important!: Many different cultures should be allowed to flourish independently within each political entity.
Egalite = Sphere of Rights and Legality
Democracy and equality before the law. [Doesn’t sound radical, but remember: Central Europe had no real democracies until the 1920s! Even intellectuals were not at all sure that democracy was the right political form.]
Labor belongs here [!] Steiner: you can’t sell your labor (vs. Marx). The means to live are a right. (cf. minimum wage laws, child labor laws)
Banks [!], whose proper function is to allocate capital justly for the good of all. Many function more like non-profit foundations supporting worthy causes. Some of these banks publish regular newsletters, inviting depositors to choose among loan applicants who describe their projects.
Fraternite = Economic Sphere [!]
Steiner: the fundamental principle governing economic activity should be neither freedom nor competition nor equality, but rather altruism.
Altruism’s main practical form should be an “associative economics,” in which producers and consumers confer and cooperate to produce what is really wanted as efficiently as possible.
A fascinating insight: Increasing division of labor actually is moving us in the direction of ever-greater altruism. We no longer work for ourselves. Increasingly, we work for others.
This leads directly to Steiner’s maxim,
THE FUNDAMENTAL SOCIAL LAW
A society is heathy to the degree that each person’s needs are met not by themselves, but by others.
It’s like the story about heaven and hell …
The Threefold Human Constitution
For Steiner, this “threefold” social organism is also healthy in that it corresponds to three great systems of our human constitution: head/nervous (spiritual-cultural), heart/rhythm (rights), and will/metabolism (economics; metabolism as “exchange of goods”).
Not a substantive connection, but rather an appropriate model for a “humane” society. Organic collaboration and segregation of powers. Flow, interconnection, interdependence.
See the first selection in the reading on the Threefold Social Order. This is actually the first place where Steiner discusses this tripartion of the body and the soul.
The True Nature of Capital
Surprise: capital belongs in the “spiritual-cultural” sphere! If capital is retained in the economic sphere, to the end of mere increase, the result is sickness. Rather, capital should be “neutralized.”
Actually, this is not so strange in our “knowledge” economy. Cf. Microsoft (the capital walks out the door every night); Amazon and Dell: “thin.” Intellectual property is much more valuable than physical property, which can even be a liability.
Steiner says something strong here that is a real challenge:
“One has to believe that money flows towards initiative as strongly as one believes that water flows downhill.”
Actually, this seems to be precisely the way in which money works in our contemporary economy. The Fed creates money out of nothing in response to demand!
Qualities of Money
Purchase money. No freedom. Immediate obligation.
Loan money (“credit” from “credo”). Limited freedom due to temporal displacement of obligation.
Gift money. Only this last is truly “free,” in that it liberates the recipient. In gift money, “capital” looks most like itself!
Neutralization of Capital
One could also say: “socialization of capital.” Not owned by any one individual. Land trusts.
Endowments! Who controls the assets? A board of experts who hold the public’s trust. We even call these “trusts”!
NB: the tax code recognizes this. Surely the most progressive feature of our tax code.
A good example of this principle is copyright law. Private capital becomes public after a period of time. A challenging corollary: there should be no inheritance!