Unit 2: Politics and the State

Unit 2: Politics and the State

• This unit explores the relationship between politics and the state.
• The index outlines the topics to be covered.

Index

• Politics in the State
• History of the State
• Influence of ideologies and political paradigms (Welfare State and globalisation)
• Democracy vs. Authoritarianism

1. Politics and the State (I)

• Politics has historically existed outside state structures.
• A historical ideal typology categorises political societies:
  • Tribal and pre-political societies
  • The polis
  • Pre-modern or pre-state empires
  • Feudal polyarchies
  • Statal monarchies

1. Politics and the State (II)

• Explanatory models for understanding the transformation to the modern state.
• Four main currents in structural change:
  • Durkheim: social division of labor
  • Marx: modification of economic organization
  • Weber/Parsons: means of domination (military, administration)
  • Gumplowicz/Spencer: competition for resources

1. Politics and the State (III)

• Characteristics of the state:
  • Defining politics as a distinct sphere from other societal aspects (family, religion, economy)
  • Institutionalization of political reality (focus on rules and laws)
  • Exclusive right of coercion through law and the use of violence
  • Clearly defined territory as the framework for action

1. Politics and the State (IV)

• State features are tendencies that fluctuate in intensity
• Every state asserts its authority and fights against opposition

2. History of the State (I)

• Development of political organization throughout history
• Key periods in the development of the state:
  • 15th-16th centuries: consolidation of long-distance trade, security needs, public world vision.
  • Monarch as sole political authority
  • Administration of coercion by the monarch
  • Armies becoming professionalized

2. History of the State (II)

• Theoretical and ideological approaches supporting the rise of the absolutist state:
  • Machiavelli: concentration of power in the prince
  • Bodin: state sovereignty
  • Hobbes: social contract, renunciation of self-rule

2. History of the State (III)

• The absolute state (15th-17th centuries):
  • Relationship between sovereign and subject.
  • Law as an expression of the sovereign's will
  • Monarch's control over all political functions
  • State not responsible for material welfare

2. History of the State (IV)

• The liberal state (18th century onwards):
  • Relationship between state and citizen
  • Citizen-independent of the sovereign's privileges
  • Fundamental rights protection from state intervention
  • State adheres to rule of law
  • Separation of powers

2. History of the State (V)

• State activism in the context of competitive capitalism
• Ideology influencing this period (Locke, Montesquieu, Rousseau, Kant)

2. History of the State (VI)

• Elements of the State:
  • Population: criteria for belonging
  • Citizenship and Nationality
  • Nation-building and State-building
• ongoing debate around these topics in relation to decolonization, disintegration of USSR, globalization, and immigration

2. History of the State (VII)

• The State's delimited territory:
  • Historical development from nomadic tribes to national states
  • Physical boundaries (land, water, airspace) for action and operation
  • Claims of exclusivity are common but lead to conflicts.

2. History of the State (VIII)

• The state's capacity of coercion (sovereignty):
  • Exclusive power to make binding decisions within its territory
  • Internal and external aspects of the state's supremacy
• State's right to use violence

3. Influence of ideologies and political paradigms. Welfare State and globalisation (I)

• The Welfare State:
  • Result of historical experiences adjusting the liberal state to mass politics
  • Redefined relationship between power and citizens/groups
  • Expanded civil and political rights
  • Negotiated pacts between groups sharing power
  • Responsibilities for economic risks of vulnerable groups
  • Increase in political activity

3. Influence of ideologies and political paradigms. Welfare State and globalisation (II)

• Driving forces behind 20th-century welfare state development:
  • Expansion of Fordism
  • Trade-union and political party pressure
  • Bipolar geopolitical context
  • Response to the 1929 crisis
• Welfare state successes and limitations post-WWII:
  • Economic boom
  • Stagnation and issues arising from the 1970s

3. Influence of ideologies and political paradigms. Welfare State and globalisation (III)

• Neoliberal framework's rise (1980-2020):
  • Chicago School of Economic thinking, impact
  • Thatcher/Reagan policies
  • Emphasis on economic orthodoxy, free market, and capital mobility

3. Influence of ideologies and political paradigms. Welfare State and globalisation (IV)

• Globalization as the culmination of human territorial, economic, and political expansion
  • 5 centuries of territorial expansion
  • 1 century of economic expansion
  • Issues arising from globalisation; gap between production and capital

3. Influence of ideologies and political paradigms. Welfare State and globalisation (V)

• Shifting characteristics of the state and population
• resource pressures and aging populations
• mass migration and urban shifts
• challenges to the state posed by mass migration

3. Influence of ideologies and political paradigms. Welfare State and globalisation (VI)

• Territory:
  • Delocalization and global competitiveness
  • Shifting significance of work (deterritorialization)
  • The Anthropocene's impact and implications
  • Rise of digital revolutions, changing social interactions

3. Influence of ideologies and political paradigms. Welfare State and globalisation (VII)

• Sovereignty: implications of social networks
• Increased interest in international security
• Rise of crime, punitive systems
• Challenges to traditional state authority

4. Democracy vs. Authoritarianism (I)

• Defining democracy: historical and conceptual exploration
  • Peicoles' speech (430 BC)
  • Locke's theory of social contract (1690)

4. Democracy vs. Authoritarianism (II)

• Defining ideal democracy based on Dahl's (2004) criteria
  • Effective participation
  • Equal voting
  • Informed electorate
  • Citizen control of decision-making
  • Inclusion
  • Fundamental rights

4. Democracy vs. Authoritarianism (III)

• Representative democracy:
  • Debate over "democracy" vs. "republic"
  • Representative democracy is an innovation as an intermediary step.
  • Key elements of representative democracies

4. Democracy vs. Authoritarianism (IV)

• Real Polyarchies:
  • Modern democracies demonstrate this "approximative" form
  • Polyarchies characterized by contesting and comprehensive inclusion
  • Power dialogues and collective factors
  • Civil/political/social rights, interest group interactions
  • State roles in the economy and vulnerable groups

4. Democracy vs. Authoritarianism (V)

• Value of Democracy: arguments for democracy over autocracy
  • Avoiding cruelty and depravity, protecting fundamental rights, allowing personal freedoms, enabling expressions of interest, guaranteeing moral responsibility, fostering human development, promoting political equality

4. Democracy vs. Authoritarianism (VI)

• Unfulfilled promises of Democracy
  • Political subjects - unequally empowered groups
  • Representatives reflecting group interests
  • Difficulty in connecting ruling power to the ruled population
  • Issues of opacity of power, and relationships of dependency

4. Democracy vs. Authoritarianism (VII)

• Totalitarian vs. Authoritarian regime distinctions:
  • Totalitarianism: elaborate ideology, mass mobilization, and absolute governing power
  • Authoritarianism: conservative ideology, depoliticization, some rule of law predictability, limited pluralism

4. Democracy vs. Authoritarianism (VIII)

• Illiberal democracies and Populism:
  • Illiberal democracies- limiting democratic freedoms
  • Populism- ideology viewing society as divided groups; emphasizing general will over individual rights.

This quiz delves into the intricate relationship between politics and the state. It covers historical typologies of political societies, as well as the evolution towards modern state structures through various theoretical lenses. Test your understanding of key concepts like democracy, authoritarianism, and the influences of ideologies on state development.