en all members of a society strive for a better community, thinking in terms of the populace, they will be able to exist politically free. Shifting the focus of the individual from the private interests created under capitalism to a public concern necessary for political freedom, more will be done to benefit society as a whole. Learning to escape the private realm and understand the public is to understand the possibility of a greater good found in working together rather than many separate smaller goods held by only certain individuals. Individuals with separate personal goods allow for the existence of individuals with their own separate failure and lack of essential good. The concept of greater good versus private good is easily explained through the examination of any system where separate individuals work together to produce a good that can only be created collectively. Think about a kitchen in a gourmet restaurant. There are numerous chefs working on specific tasks. Each chef needs the abilities of the other chefs to compliment his or her own abilities because the final entre is not complete without the contribution of the entire kitchen staff. The chef responsible for making sauces may create a fabulous sauce, but it is a failure if he or she has nothing on which to put the sauce. Arendt sees how working together can provide a far greater benefit than working alone; this principle holds true in politics just as it does in the kitchen. De Tocqueville's observation of the potential political power of associations opens a window of opportunity regarding political freedom. Arendt rules out the possibility of freedom when citizens lack involvement in the government. To be a participator in politics does not necessarily require an individual to be a participator in government. Political power is not confined to the government, nor is it necessary for political decisions to spawn from within the governmental confines. It i...
