Midterm 1 Flashcards
politics
process by which groups representing divergent interests and values make collective decisions
2 assumptions in politics
- all complex societies will need ways of sorting out different interests/values and try to reconcile them
- economic scarcity is inevitable
3 political questions
- what values such decisions serve
- concerns who makes the decisions
- how those who make the decisions are able to enforce them
political system
the totality of institutions within a state and all the connections between them
sovereign
the principle of self-government; to say a state is sovereign is to claim that it has a monopoly of force over the people and institutions in a given territorial area
civil society
community of citizens, but the modern definition specifically refers to the institutions (ex. interest groups and nongovernmental organizations) that stand in an intermediary position between the individual and the state
- links individual to the state
realism
a school of thought in the human sciences (esp. phil, soci, and IR)
- focused on war and peace
governance
term often preferred now to government since it reflects the broader nature of modern government, which includes not just the traditional institutions of government but also the many other factors that may influence the decisions that steer society, such as subnational and supranational institutions, the workings of the market, and the role of interest groups
3 arguments of animal rights
- animals and humans are similar (conscious and sentient beings)
- animals are innocent
- treating animals well creates a benevolent society
3 streams of political teaching
- political ideas (theory/philosophy)
- political institutions (comparative politics)
- relations between states (global/intl relations)
normative analysis
the basis of political philosophy. Normative analysis is concerned with what “ought to be” as opposed to what “is”. Thus, instead of asking whether democracy, freedom, or a pluralist state exists, it asks whether these things are desirable
empirical analysis
analysis of factual information (what is)
semantic analysis
analysis focusing on the meaning of the concepts we use, where they came from, and why and how we use them
rational choice theory
the theory (borrowed from economics) that humans are self-interested and rational beings and therefore will analyze cost and benefits of their choices to maximize gains and minimize losses
behaviouralism
uses inductivism, where it focuses on the quantifiable (ex. voting behaviour)
deductive method of politics
associated with rational choice theories of politics
inductive approach
starts with empirical observations and fraw explanatory generalizations from them (ex. behaviouralism)
falsification
the process of testing a hypothesis, and its results amy either disprove or support the existing theory
state
(Max Weber) an institution claiming a “monopoly of the legitimate use of physical force in enforcing its order within a given territorial area”
two types of sovereignty
- de jure: legal right to rule supremely
2. de facto: the actual ability of a govt to wield political power
night-watchman state
government concentrates on ensuring external and internal security, plays little role in civil society and allows the economic market to operate unhindered
- primary duty is to protect lives, liberty and property
developmental state
strong relationships with private economic institutions to promote economic development
liberal democracies
characterized by free and fair elections, universal suffrage and a high degree of personal liberty and protection of individual rights
illiberal democracies
hold regular elections but give relatively little protection to rights and liberties
- control means of communication
authoritarian regimes
do not have fair elections and their political rulers lack accountability
totalitarian regimes
use brutal and oppressive state police aiming to control all aspects of life
pluralism
in political theory, is usually associated with a theory of the state according to which political power is diffuse, all organized groups having some influence on state outputs
classical pluralism
society comprises thousands of groups of all shapes and sizes pursuing thousands of activities and competing for political, social and economic influence
political pluralism
the states role is to regulate and mediate between these groups, who have their own agenda
interest group
an organization set up to promote or defend a particular interest or cause
sectional groups
concerned with protecting the economic interests of its members
cause/promotional groups
promote the interests of a particular group of people or an ideal
elite pluralism/elitism
power is concentrated in the hands of a powerful elite that dominates the economic, military and governmental spheres
corporal/neo-corporatism
the state incorporated economic interests, coordinating policy with trade unions and industries, in order to control them and civil society in general
modern social corporatism/neo-corporatism
shares with pluralism the belief that groups are a crucial part of the political system, rejects pluralist notion that the various groups theoretically have an equal opportunity to be heard
iron law of oligarchy
there will always be one dominant group that for some reason = whether because of the resources it can muster, its psychological characteristics or its position within society - is able to take control
economic sphere of society
those who have economic power have political power
negative rights
rights to life, liberty and property are rights against state interference
legal rights
statements of what the existing law is in a particular society at a particular time
natural rights
rights that humans consider to possess no matter what legal and political system they live under
natural law
a higher law handed down from nature or God
positive rights
rights to social goods (ex. free education)
classical liberal theory
the state should remain neutral in debates over different conceptions of the good
communiatarianism
call for the state to play a role in uniting society around a common set of values
power
the ability to make others do something that they would not have chosen to do (coercion)
2 possible alternatives for coercion
- ideological control: manipulates preferences of the ruled to reflect the ruler’s interests
- convert power to authority: make the rule legitimate in the eyes of the rules
authority
legitimate power, in the sense that rulers gain the acceptance of the ruled by persuading them to recognize the rulers’ right to exercise power
- associated with consent
- can still be illegitimate
constituency
an electoral district
traditional authority
based on traditional customs and values
charismatic authority
based on the personal traits of an individual
legal-rational authority
based on the status of either the ruler’s office as a part of a system of constitutional rules (in a democratic country) or a religious text
is power the same as force?
power can be exercised through the use of force, using force usually means power has failed
must power be exercised deliberately
power stems from production of intended results
- unforeseen effects of power cannot be called power
is power a good thing?
power can be used for good and bad
can we eliminate power?
power cannot be eliminated but its nature changes over time
Michael Foucault’s view on poweer
power is inescapable, and we cannot liberate ourselves from it
Steven Lukes’ view on power
people can escape domination but they have to recognize this domination
Indigenous peoples
the Aboriginal peoples of Canada, normally divided between First Nations, Inuit, and Metis
Inuit
Indigenous peoples of what is now the Canadian Arctic and subarctic
Steven Lukes’ first face of power
A has power over B to the extent that he can get B to do something B would not otherwise do
- pluralism
Steven Lukes’ second face of power
Power is also exercised in less obvious ways (ex. a dominant elite keeps issues that might threaten its position off the public agenda)
Steven Lukes’ third face of power
A may exercise power over B by getting him to do what he does not want to do, but he also exercises power over him by influencing, shaping, or determining his very wants
pluralism
theory of a state according to which political power is diffuse, all organized groups have some influence on state outputs
critiques of pluralism
- issues are not ranked by importance, and an elite group may allow a small group to have its way, so that the elite gets it way on more important issues
- assumes barrier of entries are low
- elite may set their own agenda
methodology
a particular way in which knowledge is produced
First Nations
one of three officially recognized Indigenous peoples of Canada (alongside Inuit and metis)
- FN with legally recognized status are members of one of 634 govt-recognized govts or bands that can benefit from treaty rights
how to identify third face of power
- identify convert grievances (those that clearly exist are not openly discussed)
- identify reasons they might have been excluded from public discussion
James C. Scott’s critique of the third face of power
argues researchers tend to mistakenly assume that dominated groups will always comply with those who try to manipulate them ideologically
socialism
a political and economic theory of social organization which advocates that the means of production, distribution, and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole
false consciousness
a belief or perspective that prevents someone from assessing the true nature of a situation
hegemony
a form of domination that appears to be legitimate to those within the system
democracy
a system of rule in which political power is widely distributed and power in some way rests with the people
direct democracy
system in which the people rule directly; possible in only a very small-scale society
representative democracy
people theoretically choose others to represent their interests
demos
citizens within a city-state
kratos
power or rule
liberal democracy
a state characterized by free and fair elections, universal suffrage, a relatively high degree of personal liberty, anf protection of individual rights
polyarchy
a term coined by Robert Dahl to refer to a society where govt outcomes are the product of the competition between groups
- the rule of minorities, not majorities, is postulated as the normal condition of pluralist democracies
democratic elitism
a model of democracy in which voters have the opportunity to choose between competing teams of leaders; an attempt, most closely associated with Joseph Schumpeter, to reconcile elitism with democracy
deliberative democracy
a model of democracy based on the principle that discussion and debate among citizens lead to rational, legitimate, and altruistic decision making
political obligation
the question of what, if anything, obliges individuals to obey the state; a central preoccupation of political theorists
consociational democracy
a form of rule practised in some divided societies whereby the elites of different communities within the society share power
cosmopolitan democracy
a system based on popular control of supranational institutions and processes
harm principle
the principle, associated with JS Mill, that all actions should be allowed unless they harm others
procedural justice
the fairness of the process by which an outcome is reached, regardless of what the outcome actually is
social justice
the principle that goods ought to be distributed according to need, merit, or the principle of equality
Meritocratic theory of justice
a theory that advocates distributing resources to those who display some merit, such as innate ability or willingness to work hard, and therefore deserve to be rewarded
original position
a term used by John rawls to denote a hypothetical situation in which individuals under a “veil of ignorance” as to their personal circumstances would decide which rules of justice should govern the society in which they will live
cosmopolitanism
the idea that humans ought to be regarded as a single moral community to which universal principles apply, irrespective of national boundaries
intergenerational justice
principles of justice relating to non contemporaries, that is, between parents and children or those living now and still to be born
intragenerational justice
principles of justice relating to contemporaries, that is, people who are living at the same time
ideology
a set of ideas designed to describe the existing political order, present a vision of what the ideal political order should look like
classical liberalism
developed in the 18-19th centuries, theory promotes limiting the state’s role in political, economic, and social life
- state does little except ensuring internal and external security and enforcing private property rights
new liberalism
a version of liberalism that advocates a more positive role for the state than classical liberalism, argues that the state, in corrected the inequities of the market, can increase liberty by creating greater opportunities for individuals to achieve their goals
negative liberty
liberty that can be increased by removing external obstacles, such as physical constraints or legal prohibitions
positive liberty
liberty that can be increased either by state action or by removing internal obstacles such as immortality or irrationality
authoritarian
a form of rule that restricts personal liberty and is not accountable to the public
utopia
an ideal state of affairs that does not exist but can be aimed for
neoconservatism
a political theory developed in the US that focuses on the expansion of US military power to accomplish democratic regime change and other goals to further US primacy
- value patriotism, the ability to distinguish between allies and rivals internationally, have a tendency to distrust intl institutions like the UN
nationalism
in poli and IR, the doctrine or ideology according to which the nation is entitled to political autonomy, usually in a state of its own
self-determination
the principle (embodying elements of both democracy and nationalism) that “peoples” have the right to determine their own political future
communitarianism
a school of thought that emphasizes the individual’s particular community as the rouse of his or her identity, rights, and duties, often contrasted with cosmopolitanism
