Recent Southern Political Thought

Abstract

Regional literature, including political literature, is prolific in the South. But to survey those political writings by themselves would place southern theory out of perspective. After all, it is more important to know that southern thought is in the general political current of American thought than it is to know what are the peculiarities of southern political thought. Comparably, it is more important to know that political thought in the United States is a part of the general current of thought of western civilization than it is to know what are the distinctive currents of American thought. This last statement as to the general content of American thought will doubtless not be acceptable to Col. R. R. McCormick and the Chicago Tribune. Equally, the statement as to southern thought will probably not be acceptable to those who lay greatest emphasis upon the southern tradition, such as those of the authors of I'll Take My Stand,' who, like Allen Tate, still emphasize the uniqueness as well as the continuity of the southern tradition. The position taken herein is that of Francis W. Coker when he asked the question, Are There Distinctive Political Traditions for the South? 2 The answer is, yesthere are distinctive traditions but these are not unique. In support of the idea that southern political theory is not unique, I have stated elsewhere 3 that there are four main currents of southern thought. First there is the liberal tradition of Thomas Jefferson. This tradition emphasizes government policies which will be broadly beneficial to the people; and a government controlled by the people. It is the liberal and democratic tradition. This policy was originally associated with states' rights, but in the Jeffersonian tradition states' rights are but the means to an end. Subsequently, at the end of the nineteenth and