Political Theory and Ideologies Class Notes PDF

**Class 7: Freedom** - **John Stuart Mill's Harm Principle**: Individuals are free to act as they choose unless their actions harm others. (Happiness is only possible with freedom. Greater freedom of thought and expression. He believed that this leads to the development of society.) (...

**Class 7: Freedom** - **John Stuart Mill's Harm Principle**: Individuals are free to act as they choose unless their actions harm others. (Happiness is only possible with freedom. Greater freedom of thought and expression. He believed that this leads to the development of society.) (Principle of harm -- must be regulated. For example, actions that involve physical harm to another -- State intervention. But the individual and his actions must be free.) - **Negative Freedom**: Freedom from external constraints.(Negative- absence of\..., removing obstacles to our freedom) - **Positive Freedom**: The provision of resources to realize one\'s potential. - Tensions between individual freedom, cultural pluralism, and state intervention. (Positive - something needs to be added. Minimum conditions to reach its potential. State. Intervention. So that everyone can be free. If we think in terms of fundamental human rights and even cultural pluralism.) **Class 8: Justice (Justice deals with the distribution of resources (wealth, income, educational opportunities...) that are scarce.)** - **Distributive vs. Procedural Justice**: - Distributive: Fair allocation of resources and opportunities.(Distributive concept, distribution of goods and resources such as wealth.) - Procedural: Transparency and fairness in decision-making processes.(focuses on the quality of the process through which a distributive decision was made and on compliance with rules (the process was transparent and impartial) - Distribution of assets according to a set of rules) - **John Rawls' Principles of Justice**: - Equal basic liberties for all. - Allow inequalities only if they benefit the least advantaged (Difference Principle). - **Alternative Theories:** - Cosmopolitan (global redistribution), - Cosmopolitan theory of justice-- we need to think about justice not only at the state level but also at the global level; there are inequalities between nations, often due to past actions of richer nations, and it is fair that richer nations help poorer nations; there is a redistribution of resources between different parts of the world; it is based on the principle that we owe loyalty to all human beings and not just those who live within the borders of our country. It can be applied in the context of climate change. - Communitarian (cultural context), - Communitarianism-- principles of justice cannot be universal, as they must take into account the specific cultural and social characteristics of the society to which they are to be applied. We should simply try to coexist peacefully with other cultures, respecting the sovereignty of other states and not interfering with their actions (unless we are threatened) nor imposing our principles on them, as each community will have its own principles of justice and these are legitimate. He considers the cosmopolitan idea of global citizenship unrealistic, as he believes that our loyalties and identities are formed within our community. - Green (future generations). - Green theories of justice-- extends the principles of justice to include animals, nature and future generations, arguing that the rights of generations yet to be born should be taken into account (e.g. not polluting the environment to the point where it is irreparable, dividing natural resources more fairly between humans and animals, etc.). Criticism -- it is not fair to reduce economic development to benefit future generations when there are so many people in the present who do not have decent living conditions. **Class 9: Political Ideologies** - **Liberalism** - **[LIBERALISM IS THE MOST DOMINANT IDEOLOGY]** - **Classical**: Minimal state interference. - **classical liberalism** -- which considers that the State should have minimal interference in society at a social and economic level, and should only guarantee security and the right to private property, as this increases the freedom of individuals and rewards those who work harder. - **Social**: State ensures welfare and equality of opportunity. - However, extreme poverty has given rise to the new liberalism **(social liberalism)** -- which considers that the State should intervene to ensure that all individuals have basic conditions for survival (pensions that guarantee \'basic income\' even for people who do not work, health care, education, etc.), as it is believed that extreme poverty is an obstacle to freedom, since someone who is constantly on the brink of death is not free to do what they want. - **Socialism**: - **Revolutionary Socialism:** - Associated with Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, advocating for the overthrow of capitalism through revolution. - Calls for the establishment of a classless, stateless society where resources are collectively owned. - Socialism is closely associated with Karl Marx, and in the 20th century it split into two strands: a revolutionary one, which includes Marx, which says that the only way to achieve a socialist society is through a violent revolution by the lower classes - **Revisionist Socialism:** - Promoted by Eduard Bernstein, who argued for achieving socialism through democratic reforms and gradual change. - Focuses on social justice, welfare policies, and reducing economic inequality without abolishing capitalism. - a revisionist one, defended by Eduard Bernstein, which says that violence is not necessary and that a socialist society can be achieved through democratic means of suffrage (evolutionary socialism). - This second strand later gave rise to **social democracy**, which no longer aimed to end capitalism, while the first led to communism. - For socialists, economic inequality is never justified and human beings can achieve much more through cooperation than through competition Criticisms: overly utopian view of human nature; constant state intervention to maintain equality can lead to an authoritarian logic. Key concepts: optimistic view of human nature, equality of results, community and cooperation. - **Conservatism** - Values tradition, gradual change, and hierarchy (Edmund Burke). - Edmund Burke: Advocated for preserving institutions and customs that have stood the test of time. - Suspicious of rapid changes, emphasizing hierarchy, authority, and responsibility. - Modern conservatism may include economic liberalism and opposition to expansive government. **Conservatism** emerged to oppose the liberal and enlightened ideas of the French Revolution. Associated with Edmund Burke, it believes that radical changes are dangerous and **that it is best to continue doing what has been done before, the "tried and tested", because it is known to work**. It opposes abstract intellectualization and rationalism, preferring practical principles**. It does not believe that human beings have the capacity to rationally understand the complexity of the political and social world**, and therefore considers the accumulated collective wisdom of past generations to be more reliable than abstract rationalization. Any change must be slow and progressive in order to preserve the things that were good and valuable. It defends a hierarchical society because it considers that there are those who have a greater natural capacity to govern and that they should have more power. Criticisms: it is an attempt to maintain the established order and the status quo, of those who had power to continue to have power and to eliminate any possible loss of privileges of the dominant elite; wants to preserve what already existed without worrying about analyzing whether what already existed has any value for the well-being of society. **Key concepts: aversion to rationality, human imperfection, organic vision of society and preference for hierarchies.** - **Nationalism**: - **Nationalism** emerged as a predominantly European ideology in the 19th century, as an attempt by the State to unify society through a strong national identity, in a newly industrialized world in which people were becoming more individualistic. **It defends that the highest value is the Nation and, despite not having very concrete ideas about the direction in which society should be taken, some say that it is one of the strongest ideologies because it has had a great historical impact and much has been done in the name of nationalism.** It is divided into three types: civic, ethnic and anti-colonial nationalism. - **Civic: Loyalty to shared institutions and values. (Civic: associated with multiculturalism, it argues that to be members of the nation we do not necessarily need to share a culture or language or history, but only to accept and adopt the institutions and values of the Nation. The origin of the person does not matter, only their loyalty to the nation.)** - **Ethnic: Based on common heritage and culture. (Ethnic: based on a national identity formed by a shared cultural heritage, in which the members of the nation are people who share the same language, traditions, religion, etc.)** - **Anti-colonial: Liberation from imperial powers. (Anti-colonial: it emerged after the Second World War with the decolonization movement, mainly in Asia and Africa, as a reaction against the subjugation of these countries by foreign powers.)** **Criticism: Nationalism it is not an ideology properly speaking because it has no great political content or normative value, it says nothing about the character of the nation\'s political system or about the importance of values such as justice or freedom.** - **Anarchism**: Advocates for stateless societies, emphasizing individual autonomy. **(Anarchism -- the State is not necessary, in fact, it has a corrupting influence on society)** - **Fascism** - which emerged in the 20th century, is closely associated with the regimes of Hitler and Mussolini, and is an extreme form of nationalism and authoritarianism that opposes the ideas of the Enlightenment**. It opposes liberalism, democracy, reason, individualism and socialism. It rejects abstract intellectualisation in favour of instinct, emotion and action, and sees society as an organism in which everyone has a function and knows their place.** The masses are ignorant and must be guided by a powerful leader belonging to a superior elite. Individual identity must always be absorbed by the identity of the whole, with each individual\'s sole aim being to serve the nation and sacrifice their personal interests for the interests of the state. The state is what gives meaning to individuals\' lives, and so they owe it total subservience. It inevitably leads to totalitarian regimes. Hitler\'s Nazi regime also had a very specific racist and expansionist component. Even after the Second World War, supporters of fascist ideology continued to exist and emerged with greater force in times of economic or social crisis. **Class 10: Political Theory and Intersectionality** - **Keisha Lindsay**: Intersectionality analyzes how race, gender, and power intersect in defining \"the good life.\" - Examples: **Suffrage movements, gay rights activism, and theorists like John Locke and Karl Marx.** - Keisha Lindsay: **Intersectionality** is a way of understanding how different social identities, like race, gender, class, and sexuality, combine and overlap to influence people\'s experiences and opportunities. It helps show how systems of power, like racism and sexism, can work together to create unique challenges for individuals. - Simplified Origin and Idea: - Coined by Kimberlé Crenshaw to explain how anti-discrimination laws failed to address the combined impact of race and gender on Black women. - Builds on ideas from Black feminist thinkers like bell hooks and Patricia Hill Collins, who emphasized how systems of power, such as patriarchy and racism, interact. - Applications: - Suffrage Movements: Early women\'s rights movements often focused on white, middle-class women, ignoring issues like racism and poverty faced by women of color. - Gay Rights Activism: LGBTQ+ movements have sometimes overlooked the struggles of queer people of color or transgender individuals. - Labor Movements: Highlights how workers' struggles for fair pay and conditions are complicated by race, gender, and immigration status. - Impact on Political Theory: - Challenges \"one-size-fits-all\" ideas of equality and justice in traditional theories. - Suggests that thinkers like John Locke and Karl Marx overlooked how race and gender influence power dynamics. - Modern Relevance: - Guides debates on policies like affirmative action and healthcare access by considering overlapping disadvantages. - Pushes for more inclusive representation in governments and institutions. - Critiques: - Some argue it divides people into too many categories, making unity difficult. - Others think it focuses too much on oppression instead of common goals or shared experiences. - Some argue intersectionality can lead to identity-based fragmentation, making collective action more difficult. - Others believe it overly emphasizes oppression at the expense of shared experiences and common goals. **Class 14: Globalization and Governance** - **Globalization: Increasing interconnectedness of countries through trade, communication, culture, and political cooperation. It boosts economic growth and cultural exchange but challenges state sovereignty.** - **Governance vs. Government: Governance involves international organizations, non-governmental actors, and local entities working together, as opposed to government, which refers to centralized state control. This shift helps address global challenges that require cooperation.** - **Challenges to Sovereignty:** 1. **Cross-border activities, like trade and migration, make it harder for states to enforce laws.** 2. **Global corporations and financial markets often influence state policies.** 3. **Cybersecurity issues and digital platforms operate across borders, needing global governance.** - **Key Areas of Global Governance:** 1. **Economic Governance: Institutions like the WTO and IMF regulate trade and finance but face criticism for favoring wealthier nations.** 2. **Environmental Governance: Agreements like the Paris Climate Accord address climate change but struggle with enforcement and compliance.** - **Security and Peace: The UN and alliances like NATO play vital roles in maintaining global peace and resolving conflicts.** - **Case Studies:** 1. **European Union (EU): An example of shared governance balancing national sovereignty and collective decision-making. Brexit shows the tension between these forces.** 2. **Paris Agreement: Brings countries together to reduce emissions but faces challenges like uneven commitment and lack of enforcement mechanisms.** - **Critiques:** - **Global institutions are often seen as lacking accountability to citizens.** - **Wealthier nations dominate decision-making.** - **Nationalist movements resist global cooperation, prioritizing sovereignty.** **Class 15: Feminism in Political Science** - **Feminism - all genders having equal rights and opportunities. It\'s about respecting diverse women\'s experiences, identities, knowledge and strengths, and striving to empower all women to realise their full rights.** - **Liberal Feminism**: Advocates reforms for gender equality, focusing on legal and institutional changes. (It is based on the observation that men tend to dominate the positions of greatest power in society. It believes that the State can be persuaded to adopt reform measures that favor women, focusing on the social inequalities of the moment (the first liberal feminists fought forright to voteand equal access to education, while contemporary ones aim to ensure equal social opportunities, fair economic policies, equal civil rights and sexual freedom).It is an individualist aspect of feminism, which focuses on women\'s ability to maintain their equality through their own actions and choices, emphasizing equality between men and women and proposing changes in legal systems but not changes in social structures (laws are changed but the State is maintained)) - **Radical Feminism**: Seeks to dismantle patriarchal structures and transform both public and private spheres of society. (It believes that the state only manages society in accordance with the interests of men. It proposes a radical reordering of society in which male supremacy is eliminated in all social and economic contexts, as this is the only way to truly achieve gender equality. Radical feminists seek to abolish patriarchy in the public and private spheres by challenging existing social norms and institutions, rather than through a purely political process (as in liberal feminism). This includes challenging the notion of traditional gender roles, oppose the sexual objectification of women and raise public awareness about violence against women. - They say that the state follows the interests of men. It is run by men for men. They think it is necessary to interfere in private life to achieve their ideal.)