politics what is politics? politics is….. “who does what to whom” – vladimir ilyich lenin...
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POLITICS
What is politics?Politics is….
“who does what to whom” – Vladimir Ilyich Lenin (1870 – 1924)
“bloodless war” – Mao Zedong (1873-1976)
“who gets what, when, and how much in a society” – Harold Lasswell (1902-1978)
“the doctrine of the possible, the attainable” – Otto von Bismark (1815-1898)
Politics is the social act, which attempts to resolve
the conflict between human needs and the
realities of human society
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
The Dimensions of Politics (brainstorm session)
What are the realities of human societies?
What are we in conflict about?What causes us to disagree?
The Dimensions of Politics1) Politics as Behaviour2) Politics as Culture3) Politics as Values4) Politics as Ideology (to be covered
in Chapter 2 tomorrow)5) Politics as Nation-Building (to be
covered in Units 3 and 4)
Politics as Behaviour
Political behaviour is a function of the relations humans have with their environment
Psychology
• Personality, expectations and motivations help explain individual and group responses to environmental stimuli
Social Relations• Humans are bound by fundamental relations
in families, businesses, churches, professional and leisure associations, etc.
Politics as Culture
Every political culture is unique!
Beliefs
• Convictions / assertions that we each maintain that are based on fundamental assumptions about human behaviour
Customs
• Conventional and accepted practices, ideas of appropriate and inappropriate behaviour
Expectations
• Standard assertions about what people believe ought to happen in the political world
Institutions
• Complex structures organized around a central decision-making activity or social need
Laws
• norms sanctioned by government decree or legislation
Symbols• Things that represent something else
Politics as Values
• Shared beliefs that provide standards for judging human thought and action
• Lasswell lists several values that generate politics and are sought after by people in all societies
Power
“Power is the ultimate aphrodisiac” – Henry Kissinger
Power is the ability to do, act, or accomplish something
Wealth
• The level of economic status, purchasing power of the individual
• How to divide the economic resources of a society
Health
Enlightenment
• Education is a primary value in all societies
Employment
• Work or employment is the basis of all cultures
Justice
• People want a system that is fair and impartial
• Concept of “right” and “wrong”
Respect
• Domestically, respect for achievement and freedoms
• Internationally, territorial integrity and the principle of non-intervention
Security
• The ability of a society to satisfy basic human needs
• The ability of a country to maintain it’s independence and the non-interference of other countries
Essentially, politics is an activity through which contending interests and differences may be reconciled for the supposed advantage of society.
An example of political activity
The debate surrounding an issue such as abortion.There are two main positions regarding abortion:1) The life of the child (against)2) The autonomy of women (for)Laws, beliefs, values, opinions, etc. are generated,
and there is conflict between those who agree with a position and those who don’t.
Political activity brings about:
CONSERVATIONor
CHANGE
The evaluation of this is the basis of our judgement, and the foundation of all future political activity.
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