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What is politics What is politics

What is politics - PowerPoint Presentation

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What is politics - PPT Presentation

Andrew Heywood Chapter 1 pp 313 Chapter Outline Defining politics Politics as the art of government Politics as public affairs Politics as compromise and consensus Politics as power ID: 595843

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Slide1

What is politics? Andrew Heywood: Chapter 1, pp. 3-13.

Chapter Outline:

Defining

politics

Politics as the art of government

Politics as public affairs

Politics as compromise and consensus

Politics as power

‘Faces’ (dimensions) of power

power as decision-making;

power as agenda setting;

power as thought control.Slide2

PoliticsThe Central Issues Examined in this Chapter:

What are the

defining

features of politics as an

activity

?

How

has ‘politics’ been understood by

various thinkers

and

traditions

?

Does

politics take place within all social institutions, or only in some

?Slide3

Intro: PoliticsPolitics is exciting because people disagree about many things. They

disagree

about:

how they should live.

h

ow they should distribute resources.

h

ow they should make collective decisions.Slide4

Intro: What is Politics?

Aristotle says, “

Politics is the ‘master science’

”.

Because it is the most important

activity through which human beings attempt to

improve

their lives and create the Good Society. Slide5

INTRo

There are disagreements about the nature of the subject and how it should be studied.

People disagree about both what it is that makes social interaction political;

And how political activity can be best analyzed and explained. Slide6

Defining politics What is Politics?

Politics can be defined as “

the activity

through which people make,

preserve and

amend the general rules under which they

live.”

It, therefore, by definition, involves both conflict and cooperation.

On

the one hand,

the existence of

rival opinions

, different wants, competing needs and opposing interests

leads to disagreement

about the rules under which people

live (CONFLICT). Slide7

Defining politics On

the other hand, people recognize that, in order to influence these rules or ensure that they are

maintained,

they must work with

others (COOPERATION).

-Thus politics

is often portrayed as

a process of conflict resolution, in which rival views or competing interests are reconciled with one another.

But not

all conflicts are

, or

can be, resolved

. Thus politics is a

“search

for conflict

resolution”

.Slide8

Defining politics

The inescapable presence of

diversity

(we’re not all alike) and

scarcity

(there is never enough to go around)

ensures that politics is an inevitable feature of the human condition. Slide9

Defining politics Any

attempt to clarify the meaning of ‘politics’ must

address two major problems

:

1- The

first is

about the use of the word “politics” in everyday language. It

is a ‘loaded’ (a biased) term. In other words, it has an underlying meaning or implication. Many find it difficult to believe that the subject can be approached

objectively.

As importantly, politics is often thought of as a ‘dirty’ word. It often creates images of trouble, violence, manipulation and lies. Slide10

Defining politicsTherefore, any attempt to define politics entails trying to disentangle (separate) it from such associations.

The term needs to be rescued from its

negative

reputation

by showing that it is a valuable activity. Slide11

Defining politics 2- The

second and more intractable difficulty is that even respected

authorities cannot

agree

what the subject is about

.

Politics is defined in such different ways as: The exercise of power, The exercise of authority,

T

he

making of collective decisions

,

T

he

allocation of scarce resources

,

The

practice of deception and manipulation,

and so

on.Slide12

Defining politics

This is to say, politics is essentially a

“contested concept,”

in the sense that the term has

a number of acceptable or legitimate

meanings. Slide13

Defining politics

We are going to discuss 4 different

views of

politics:

Politics as the art of government

Politics as public affairs

Politics as compromise and consensus

Politics as power Slide14

1. Politics

as the art of government:

“Politics

is not a science ... but an

art”.

Chancellor

Bismarck

told the German parliament.

He meant

the art of government

:

The exercise of control within society through the

making

and

enforcement

of

collective decisions

. Slide15

1. Politics as the art of government:

In this

light, politics can be understood to refer to the affairs of the

polis

or in its modern sense

‘what concerns the state’.To study politics is, then, in essence to study government, or, more broadly, to study the exercise of

authority

.Slide16

1. Politics as the art of government:

This is the traditional view of the discipline, reflected in the tendency for academic study to focus on the personnel and machinery of government.

In

this view, politics is associated with policy: that is, with

formal decisions

that establish

a plan of action

for the community. Slide17

1. Politics as the art of government

Politics is what takes place

within a

system of social

organization

centred

upon the machinery of government. It is practiced in cabinet rooms, legislative chambers, government departments and the like

, and it

is engaged

in by a limited and specific group of people, notably politicians, civil

servants and

lobbyists

.

Note that,

this definition offers a “highly restricted” view of politics. Slide18

1. Politics as the art of government

This

means that most people,

most institutions and most social activities can be regarded as being ‘

outside

’ politics

.

Businesses, schools and other educational institutions, community groups, families and so on are in this sense ‘

nonpolitical

’, because they are not “engaged in running the country”.Slide19

1. Politics as the art of government

It is also important to note that portraying politics as an essentially state-bound activity is

to ignore the increasingly important role of international and global influences upon modern life, such as the multinational corporations + private sector actors

.

Slide20

1. Politics as the art of government

The link between politics and the affairs of the state helps to explain why negative images have been attached to politics:

This is because in the popular mind, politics

is closely associated with the

activities of politicians

.

Politicians

are often seen as power-seeking hypocrites who

conceal

personal ambition

behind the

rhetoric

of public service and ideological conviction.

Indeed, this

perception has become more common in the

modern

period as

intensified media

exposure has more effectively brought to light examples of corruption

and dishonesty

, giving rise to the phenomenon of

anti-politics

.Slide21

Concept: Anti-politics

Disappointment with formal and established political processes, reflected in nonparticipation, support for anti-system parties, or the use of direct action. Slide22

Concept: Anti-politicsUS: Occupy Wall Street

Germany: Pirate PartySlide23

Concept: Anti-politics5 Star Movement - ItalySlide24

1. Politics as the art of government

Such

an image

of politics

is sometimes traced back to the writings of

Niccolo

Machiavelli

, who, in The Prince (1531), developed a strictly realistic account of politics that

drew attention

to the use by political leaders of

cunning, cruelty and manipulation

.Slide25

1. Politics as the art of government

Such negative opinions about politics reflects the

essentially

liberal

perception that, as individuals are self-interested, political power is corrupting, because it encourages those “in power” to exploit their position for personal advantage.

Slide26

‘Power

tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely’.

Lord Acton (1834–1902)Slide27

1. Politics as the art of government

All these may be true. However, the proponents of this view see political activity as an

inevitable

and

permanent

feature of social existence.

Because without some kind of mechanism for allocating authoritative values, society would simply disintegrate into

a civil war of each against all.

The task is therefore not to abolish politicians and bring politics to an end, but rather to ensure that politics is conducted within a framework of

checks and constraints

that ensure that

governmental power is not abused

. Slide28

2- Politics as Public AffairsThis

broader

conception of politics moves it beyond the narrow realm of government.

Here, the

distinction between ‘the

political

’ and ‘the

nonpolitical’ coincides with the division between an essentially public sphere of life and what can be thought of as a

private

sphere

.

Such

a view of politics is often traced back

to

Aristotle

. Slide29

2- Politics as Public AffairsIn

Politics

, Aristotle declared that ‘

man is by nature a political animal

’, by which he meant that it is only within a political community that human beings can live

‘the good life’

.

From this viewpoint, then, politics is an ethical activity concerned with creating a ‘just society’.

Now, we have to define “public” and “private”… Slide30

2- Politics as Public AffairsTraditional Distinction

Public

Private

The State

Apparatus of Government

Civil Society

Autonomous

bodies: businesses, trade unions, clubs, families etc.

Alternative Distinction

Public

Private

Public Realm

Politics, Commerce, Work, Art, Culture, etc.

Personal Realm

Family and Domestic LifeSlide31

2- Politics as Public AffairsTraditional Distinction

The

traditional distinction between the public realm and the private realm is in line with

the division between the

state

and

civil society

. Slide32

2- Politics as Public AffairsThe institutions of the state (the apparatus of government, the courts, the police, the army, the social-security system and so forth) can be regarded as ‘

public

’ in the sense that they are responsible for the

collective organization of community life

.

+ They are

funded

by taxes i.e. public.Civil society consists of what Edmund Burke

called

the

‘little platoons’

, institutions such as the family and kinship groups, private businesses, trade unions, clubs, community groups and so on that are ‘

private

’ in the sense that they are set up and

funded

by individual citizens to satisfy their own

interests.Slide33

2- Politics as Public Affairs

Those

areas of life that individuals can and do manage for themselves (the economic, social, domestic, personal, cultural and artistic spheres, and so on) are therefore clearly ‘

nonpolitical

’.Slide34

2- Politics as Public Affairs

Alternative Distinction

Although civil society can be distinguished from the state, it contains a range of institutions that are thought of as “

public

in the wider sense

that they are open institutions, operating in public, to which the public has access.

One of the crucial implications of this is that it broadens our notion of the political, transferring the economy in particular

from the private to the public realm. Slide35

2- Politics as Public AffairsCriticism!

This, still, remains a

restricted

view of politics because according

to this perspective, politics does not, and should not, infringe upon ‘

personal

’ affairs and institutions.

(Feminist thinkers in particular have pointed out that this implies that politics effectively stops at the front door; it does not take place in the family, in domestic life, or in personal relationships.)Slide36

2- Politics as Public AffairsThis

view

has

generated both positive and negative images.

Positive

images

:

In a tradition dating back to Aristotle, politics has been seen as a noble and enlightened activity precisely because of its “public” character. Hannah Arendt

firmly endorses this position: “politics

is the most important form of human activity because it involves interaction amongst free and equal citizens. It thus gives meaning to life and affirms the uniqueness of each individual.”

Rousseau

:

“Only

through the

direct and continuous participation of all citizens in political life

can the state be bound to the common good” or “general will”. Slide37

2- Politics as Public AffairsIn

J.S.

Mill’s

view:

“Involvement

in ‘public’ affairs is educational in that it promotes the personal, moral and intellectual development of the individual.”Negative images:In sharp contrast, however, politics as public activity has also been portrayed as a form of unwanted interference.

Liberal

theorists

in particular have exhibited a preference for

civil society over the state

, on the grounds that ‘

private

’ life is a realm of choice, personal freedom and individual responsibility.Slide38

2- Politics as Public Affairs

This is most clearly demonstrated by attempts to narrow

the realm of the political,

commonly expressed as the wish to “keep politics out of” private activities such as business, sport, and family life.

Slide39

3. Politics as compromise and consensus

Here, politics

is seen as a particular

means

of resolving conflict: that is, by compromise, conciliation and negotiation, rather than through force and naked power.

This

is what is implied when politics is portrayed as

‘the art of the possible’.

The

description of a solution to a problem as a

‘political’

solution implies peaceful debate and arbitration, as opposed to what is often called a ‘

military

’ solution. Slide40

3. Politics as compromise and consensus

One

of the leading modern exponents of this view is Bernard Crick.

Crick

offered the following definition:

“Politics [is] the activity by which differing interests within a given unit of rule are conciliated by giving them a share in power in proportion to their importance to the welfare and the survival of the whole community.”

In

this view, the key to politics is therefore a wide dispersal of power.Slide41

3. Politics as compromise and consensus

This view of politics clearly has a

positive

character.

Note that, politics is certainly no utopian solution because compromise means that concessions are made by all sides,

leaving no one perfectly satisfied

.

But, it is definitely preferable to the alternatives: bloodshed and brutality. In this sense, politics can be seen as a civilized and civilizing force. Slide42

3. Politics as compromise and consensus

People should be encouraged to respect politics as an activity, and should be prepared to engage in the political life of their own community.

It is important to understand that this involves listening carefully to the opinions of others – and this is not so easy.

That’s why there is a growing disappointment with democratic politics across much of the developed world.

As

Stoker

put it,

“Politics is designed to disappoint;”

its outcomes are

“often messy, ambiguous and never final”

. Slide43

4. Politics as PowerThe fourth definition of politics is both the

broadest

and the

most

radical

.

Rather than confining politics to a particular sphere (the government, the state or the ‘public’ realm) this view sees politics at work in all social activities and in every corner of human existence

.

P

olitics

is at the heart of

all

collective social activity, formal and informal, public and private, in

all

human groups, institutions and societies

’ (

Leftwich

). Slide44

4. Politics as PowerIn this sense, politics takes place at every level of social interaction

; it can be found within

families

and amongst small groups of friends just as much as amongst

nations

.

P

olitics concerns the production, distribution and use of resources in the course of social existence. Politics is, in essence, power: the ability to achieve a desired outcome, through whatever means.Slide45

4. Politics as PowerThis notion was summed up in the title of Harold Laswell’s

book

Politics: Who Gets What, When, How?

(1936).

From this perspective, politics is about

diversity and conflict

, but the essential ingredient is the existence of

scarcity: the simple fact that, while human needs and desires are infinite, the resources available to satisfy them are always limited. Slide46

4. Politics as Power

Politics

can therefore be seen as

a struggle over scarce resources

, and

power

can be seen as the means through which this struggle is conducted. Slide47

4. Politics as PowerAdvocates of this view of power include

F

eminists

and

Marxists

.

Kate Millett

, a feminist, defines politics as “power-structured relationships, arrangements whereby one group of persons is controlled by another”. Feminists can therefore be said to be concerned with “the politics of everyday life”.

In their view,

relationships within the family, between husbands and wives, and between parents and children, are every bit as political as relationships between employers and workers, or between governments and citizens.Slide48

4. Politics as PowerMarxists

As opposed to believing that politics can be confined to the state and a narrow public sphere, Marxists believe that “

the economic is political

”.

Lenin

says “politics is the most concentrated form of economics”.

Class struggle

is the heart of politics. Slide49

4. Politics as PowerIn Marxism

and

Feminism

, politics is portrayed in largely negative terms.

Politics is about

oppression

and

subjugation. But at the same time, politics is seen as the means through which injustice and

domination

can be challenged.

According to Marxists, class exploitation will be overthrown by a

proletarian

revolution

; Feminists call for a

sexual

revolution

where gender relations will be re-ordered. Slide50

4. Politics as PowerFinally, it is important to note that when politics is portrayed as power and domination, it is no longer an inevitable feature of social existence

.

P

roletarian/ sexual revolution, will bring politics to an end. Slide51

‘Faces’(dimensions) of powerIn politics

power

is thought of as a relationship: that is, as the ability to influence the behavior of others in a manner not of their choosing.

Power, therefore, can be said to be exercised whenever A gets B to do something that B would not otherwise have done.

This can be done in various ways: Slide52

‘Faces’(dimensions) of power 

1

.

Power as decision-making

:

-Conscious

actions that in some way influence the content of decisions.

The decisions can be influenced in various ways: In Three Faces of Power (1989), Keith Boulding distinguished between the

use of force

or intimidation (the

stick

),

productive exchanges

involving mutual gain (the

deal

), and the

creation of obligations, loyalty and commitment

(the

kiss

).Slide53

‘Faces’(dimensions) of power2.

Power as agenda setting

:

The ability

to prevent decisions being made: that is, in effect, ‘non-decision-making’.

-This

involves the ability to set or control the political agenda, thereby preventing issues or proposals from being aired in the first place.

Example: Private businesses may exert power both by campaigning to defeat proposed consumer-protection legislation (first face

), and by lobbying

politicians

to prevent the question of consumer rights being publicly discussed (

second face

).Slide54

‘Faces’(dimensions) of power3.

Power as thought control

:

T

he

ability to influence another by shaping what he or she thinks, wants, or needs.

This

is power expressed as ideological indoctrination or psychological control. (the use of propaganda and, more generally, the impact of ideology

).

This is the

radical view of power,

and it overlaps with the notion

of “

soft”

power

.