Civil Disobedience: Between Antigone and Narcissus, the Egodemocrat

According to some, refusing to obey the law would be one of the best assured way of establishing real democracy, as opposed to the misleading appearances of the democracy in which we live. Civil disobedience is supposed to be inevitable in a world experiencing a wave of liberal globalization to which our own leaders are accomplices. It is presented as legitimate and, being non-violent, as guaranteeing the defense of superior principles. It would be desirable in order to reach a new democratic horizon based on the development of each individual worthy of expressing himself and confident in his own strength. Yet, such a favorable presentation must be submitted to a critical analysis because civil disobedience is often full of ambiguities. Through what is supposed to be a normal mode of democratic action appears the image of a new citizen, the egodemocrat, between Antigone and Narcissus, refusing any kind of authority, considering himself as the measure of all things, thereby endangering life in community under the auspices of the law.