Constructing the modern state

Question 1

What means The modern state ?

Answer 1

It is an umbrella term sheltering many kinds of politics

Question 2

When does “modern” politics begin ?

Answer 2

It begins with the french revolution
It begins in the 16th century because of the impact of the Reform and counter-Reform religious movements

Question 3

What immense spiritual enthusiasm consist in ?

Answer 3

the civil society of the time was conceived of as an association of believers. So, many people across europe had to decide who comes first : church or lanslord or king

Question 4

what is the condition of politics ?

Answer 4

it must have more than one party

Question 5

How the politics of the modern state emerged out ?

Answer 5

The politics of the modern state emerged out of two conflicting movements: kingdoms tended to fragment in some ways, and to become unified in others

Question 6

What made a regime more egalitarian between kings and others (especially the rich)?

Answer 6

Kings and princes obtained more power but, at the same time, certain groups obtained priviledges and usages known as rights

Question 7

what made the transition from medieval localism to the centralized modern state ?

Answer 7

War after war after war, involving the power-hungry aristocracy – little to fight, except each other
Religion also kicked in and complicated things

Question 8

What is generally the response to civil war ?

Answer 8

It is an enthusiam for absolute governement

Question 9

Why people were scared about absolute government ?

Answer 9

many feared (still fear) the possibility of despotism
The more power is given to the government or, the more absolute the government is, the closer we are to despotism

Question 10

who was The courtier ?

Answer 10

the grandpa of today`s politicians
His aim was advancement and his skill was to please
From amongst the educated nobility – price on literature

Question 11

What is the consequences of The high-risk politics of the early modern period ?

Answer 11

the insecurity of rulers
ex: Unlike today, staking one`s life in the game of politics remained a deadly option until the 18th c
A combination of politician, lobbyist, benefactor, socialite

Question 12

what is the impact of authority ?

Answer 12

Authority distances the rulers from the ruled
Total intimacy and frankness is a dangerous indulgence for rulers
In despotism, the ruler is many times construed as a god

Question 13

What the aim of politics ?

Answer 13

Politics seeks to diminish the distance between the ruler and those being ruled – e.g., the king of selfies

Question 14

What was important to the king to manage his own turbulent subjects ?

Answer 14

With emerging modernity, it became necessary for the kings to practice policy in managing their own turbulent subjects

Question 15

What are the elements that made the “new politics”

Answer 15

generated by the heterogeneity of an individualistic society and the problem of keeping order in a large state by abstract laws

Question 16

def talian cities

Answer 16

civic republics gave way to rule by tyrants – the signore
Always suspicious and wary
Conspiracies or alliances of the powerful families, sometimes with neighboring states

Question 17

The art of state def

Answer 17

the way in which the new politics became known shifts the focus to the cynical advice on how to keep power, transforming the traditional concern with justice into a mere façade

Question 18

Def of reason of state

Answer 18

Where the interests of the state are concerned, God absolves actions which, if privately committed, would be a crime.

Question 19

what is the counterpoint to the monarchial loyalty of the early modern period ?

Answer 19

Nostalgia for the lost world of the republic.
This nostalgia served the aristocracy
To them, the king was nothing but a tyrant
Monarchy seemed wasteful, warlike, and exploitative.

Question 20

What caracterize Hobbes about idealism or nostalgia ?

Answer 20

No more idealism or nostalgia for the republic - a strong central government is necessary in order to avoid the bellum omnia contra omnes

Question 21

What are the elements that triggers civil wars ?

Answer 21

Religious dissension or aristocratic ambition could plunge a modern state into civil war
More and more individualism – more fighting
The lack of consensus and the sheer size of the modern state made the republic only a seductive memory

Question 22

What the solution to fight against sudden death ?

Answer 22

in each state, there must be a sovereign power with the authority to enforce the agreement necessary for a peaceful existence

Question 23

It is universally agreed that freedom consists in living under the law. But laws must be made. What then is the position of the lawmaker?

Answer 23

Under the law: he cannot make it – Locke
Above the law: his subjects lack the security against oppression necessary for them to be free – Hobbes

Question 24

The theory of sovereignty

Answer 24

The theoretical level: there is always some element of risk in giving the necessary power to a sovereign authority
The practical level: the alternative is definitely worse – the homo homini lupus

Question 25

def of the social contract theory

Answer 25

men will agree about the natural law

Question 26

What is the importance of the democracy and the separation of power ?

Answer 26

In practice, democracy and the separation of power are among the ways in which the sovereign power has been transformed so that it may not exploit the power of the state

Question 27

Is the technology good or bad fro the balance of power btwn the ruler and the ruled ?

Answer 27

Modern technology constantly enhanced the power available to a ruler

Question 28

elements

Answer 28

bureaucracy, explosives (castles become easily conquerable), identities, passports, borders, censorship and propaganda, images, movies, videos, NSA, big data, AI, the internet,

Question 29

The idealistic view

Answer 29

the art of state as something repressive, standing over against the aspirations of its exploited subjects, the state as a problem because it is a repressive thing that needs to be humanized

Question 30

def of politics

Answer 30

is a dialogue between these two attitudes