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Political Science 100

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... is to guide government policy, laws must codify the authoritative truths ... Laws in society codify the religious beliefs. PS 100 Chapter 4 - Political Theory ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Political Science 100


1
Political Science 100
  • Chapter 4
  • Political Theory
  • Examining the Ethical Foundations of Politics

2
Political Theory
  • PT is a subfield in Political Science focusing on
    the normative and ethical questions of politics.
  • PT involves both the study of texts and the act
    of critically thinking about what those text
    teach us.
  • PT is a history of the search for enlightenment
    on the normative questions of politics.

3
Political Theory
  • Plato (427-347 B.C.)
  • Founded the Academy
  • Wrote The Republic
  • Which included the Allegory of the Cave
  • Highest purpose of the state the promotion of
    Justice
  • Best form of the state is one that pursues
    justice
  • Justice is following nature
  • Doing what is natural, honest, and correct for
    yourself. It is following your natural calling
    your natural purpose.

4
Political Theory
  • Three Natural groups
  • Manual labor workers
  • Auxiliaries military leaders
  • Guardians public service and policymaking
  • Injustice
  • Acting contrary to nature
  • Rejects ambition
  • Reject upward and downward mobility
  • Plato is viewed today
  • Hierarchical and authoritarian
  • Critic of democracy, would be anti-American

5
Plato continued
  • Allegory of the cave
  • Illustrates the process of achieving
    understanding and enlightenment
  • As useful today as thousands of years ago
  • Shows that critical thinking is difficult and
    sometimes unsettling and often produces
    conclusions that are at odds with the status quo
    of our caves
  • New ideas may get you killed

6
The purpose of the State
  • Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679)
  • 17th century English political theorist
  • Wrote Leviathan
  • Before we consider the purpose of the state we
    must first ask ourselves, what is human nature?
    According to Hobbes human nature is
  • A story of passions, desires, fears, aggressive
    impulses, and instinctive urges to acquire power.
  • Violence impulsive behavior cause social
    conflict.
  • Humans are naturally equal to each other because
    the weakest can kill the strongest.

7
Should States promote Equality?
  • Aristotle Equal consideration of interest
  • Six forms of government
  • Monarchy rule by one in the interest of all
  • Aristocracy rule by the few in the interest of
    all
  • Polity rule of the many in the interest of all
  • Tyranny rule by one in the interest of the
    ruler
  • Oligarchy rule by the few in the interest of
    the rulers
  • Democracy rule of the many in the interest of
    the rulers

8
Should States promote Equality?
  • Thomas Jefferson (1743-18260)
  • Advocated Equality of Natural Rights
  • Primary author of the Declaration of
    Independence, governor of Virginia, secretary of
    state and third president of the United States.
  • The Declarations political theory states
  • Individuals are created naturally equal
  • Individuals possess natural rights
  • It is the proper role of government to protect
    and respect these natural rights and
  • If government violates these rights, individuals
    may overturn the government.

9
Should States promote Equality?
  • Thomas Jefferson today would be considered
    anti-Aristotle

10
Should States promote Equality?
  • Tecumseh (1768-1813)
  • Advocated Equality of Natural Rights emphasizing
    property rights
  • Shawnee theorist, founded Prophets Town
  • Believed native lands should be recovered
  • Each Native American had an equal and natural
    right to the land
  • Equality is an attribute of the people
  • Would be considered anti-Aristotle

11
Should States promote Equality?
  • Chico Mendes (1944-1988)
  • Advocated Equality of Participation
  • Brazilian rubber-tapper
  • Opposed cattle ranchers, developers, and
    international environmentalist
  • Fought for a balance that would ensure the
    survival of his way of life
  • Equality is a desirable goal for individuals and
    governments
  • Would be considered anti-Aristotle

12
Should States promote Equality?
  • Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900)
  • Argued Equality is part of slave morality
  • Slave morality desires to humble the strong and
    legitimize equality
  • Resentment, sinful actions, and suffering are key
    concepts
  • Analogy to a bucket of crabs
  • His writings were used to argue elitism and world
    domination (Hitlers master race theories)

13
Should States promote Equality?
  • Friedrich Nietzsche continued
  • Master morality serves the interest of those who
    need to legitimize strength, conquering, ruling,
    and dominating.

14
Should States promote Equality?
  • Kurt Vonnegut
  • Wrote Harrison Bergeron about future society in
    the year 2081.
  • Laws make everyone completely equal
  • Inequality is swiftly cured with mental and
    physical equalizing gear
  • A Handicapper-General enforces equality
  • Society is characterized by mediocrity,
    conformity, and drabness
  • For Vonnegut Equality is not a neutral concept
    it harms some and favors others.

15
Should States maximize their Power?
  • Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527)
  • Wrote the Prince, a classic political text.
  • Advocated a win-at-all-cost approach to governing
  • State power must be protected against any rivals
    within society.
  • Fear is the optimum basis for ruling.
  • Love is fickle, it is subject to change anytime,
    and its impossible to make people love you.
  • States must build reserves of power for use at
    any time needed.

16
Should States limit their Power?
  • James Madison (1751-1836)
  • Wrote the Federalist Papers.
  • Argued states should restrict their power by
    means of a Separation of Powers.
  • Advocated Checks and Balances in government to
    prevent one branch from dominating
  • Argue for government and protections from power
    of government.

17
Should states try to make us ethical?
  • John Stuart Mill (1806-1873)
  • Believed individuals should be free to express
    themselves on moral issues.
  • Argued that the state should interfere only if
    individuals threaten others.
  • Believed that society benefits from different
    viewpoints.
  • Recognized that progress is society is often made
    by unconventional people.

18
Should states try to make us ethical?
  • John Stuart Mill continued
  • Believed individuals should be free to express
    themselves on moral issues.
  • States should avoid the role of moral guardian
  • He challenged student to think about who should
    decide what is ethicalthe individual or the
    state?

19
Should states try to make us ethical?
  • Fundamentalism
  • Upholds what is it defines as religious truth
    basic (fundamental) propositions that are
    validated by the religion.
  • Often described as ultra-orthodox strict,
    literal, and pure.
  • Fundamentalists tend to assert
  • Religious truth is authoritative
  • Religious truth is compelling and not to be
    disregarded or reduced to being a mere option
    and
  • If fundamentalism is to guide government policy,
    laws must codify the authoritative truths of the
    religion, not assume a posture of neutrality or
    silence on the issues of politics.

20
Should states try to make us ethical?
  • Fundamentalism
  • Includes both Christian and Islamic
  • Muslim Fundamentalism
  • Taliban (students of Islam) movement in
    Afghanistan
  • The ideology opposes the equality of women with
    men.
  • They reject tribal and clan authority in favor of
    religious authority.
  • Laws in society codify the religious beliefs.

21
Should states try to make us ethical?
  • Fundamentalism continued
  • Christian Fundamentalism
  • Patrick Buchanan and the 2000 Reform Party
  • Truly legitimate ethical positions are based on
    religion and should be expressed and enforced
    through a states laws.
  • Society is in a moral crisis and the teaching of
    the Christian Bible is the only way out.
  • Buchanan rejects the idea of tolerating all
    viewpoints government should not be nuetral by
    uphold moral positions on policy issues.
  • Laws should reflect Fundamentalist values on all
    social, political, and economic matters.
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