Nature And Significance Of Political Theory

Nature And Significance Of Political Theory. Nature of political Significance The significance of political theory lies in its understanding and explains the political realities and if necessary to change it It also provide the moral criteria and the basis of the state and is institutions and proposes the alternative political arrangements and practices to suit the moral standards.

IntroductionPolitical Theory as HistoryPolitical Theory as PhilosophyPolitical Theory as ScienceGrowth and Evolution Political TheoryClassical Political TheoryModern Political TheoryContemporary Political TheorySummaryTo understand fully what political theory is one must first understand its nature Political theory is defined as “political thought” which is why some people use the term “political theory” to refer to the works of a variety of thinkers However this is not the case with political philosophy Others mistakenly conflate political theory with political philosophy True political theory is a part of political philosophy but it is only a portion a part can never be a whole and as a part it will always be just that a part Others after combining science and politics choose to refer to it as Political Science Those who insist on a science of politics on the other hand refuse to acknowledge that there has ever been a history or culture of politics Political theory is not all history but it is some history it is not all philosophy but it is some philosophy it is not all science but it is science in the sense that it responds to reason Part historian part philosopher Scholars such as George Sabine have argued that political theory is history but not all history is political theory and not all political theory is history Without history political philosophy is like a structure without a foundation What we learn to comprehend when studying and analysing politics is a political tradition and a real method of behaving As a result it is only natural that the study of politics be primarily a historical subject We should be aware that history is more than a record of the dead and buried it is a repository of knowledge and experience accomplishments and failures what has been accomplished and what has been lost It is the sumtotal and at the same time the formationhead of a new development What has lost its usefulness is defied by political ideology as history No one complains nowadays that the state is a divine creation or the consequence of a natural compact Political philosophy like history preserves what is important and aids fut Scholars such as Leo Strauss have argued that political theory is a philosophy (“What is Political Philosophy?” Journal of Politics XIX August 1967) but not all philosophy is political theory and not all political theory is philosophy Philosophy is the sum total of general laws regulating the entire world as an abstract study encompassing the entire cosmos in general and morality standards and values in particular As Sabine has pointed out it has served political theory effectively as a valuational component throughout history As Kant puts it philosophy has addressed three questions “What can I know?” “What am I supposed to do?” “What can I hope for?” is what makes philosophy a guiding light in life No political theory can ever expect to remain without philosophy without an eye on the future no present can ever afford to stay for no present exists without its history Political theory is a philosophy in the sense that it not only seeks to understand the nature of th Scholars ranging from Arthur Bentley(The Process of Government 1908) to George Catlin (The Science and Method of Politics 1927) David Easton (The Political System 1953) and Robert Dahl (Modern Political Analysis 1963) have all emphasised that political theory is a science however not all science is political theory and not all political theory is science Political theory isn’t a science in the same way that chemistry physics or mathematics are Political theory is not as precise as natural or physical sciences since there are no widely accepted principles no clear causeandeffect linkages no laboratories and no predictions produced in the way that natural and exact sciences do It is a science in the sense that it accepts observable and testable notions and rules and that it responds to the demands of reason and rationalism In order to build a science of politics American social scientists in general and the Behaviouralists in particular engaged in what has come In the West political theory has gone through several stages During the ancient Greek and mediaeval periods political theory was preoccupied with finding the ethical purposes of the state ie the objectives that the state would love achieving Both Plato and Aristotle would focus on the state’s functions of establishing justice and providing a good life for individuals The mediaeval political theory which was closely linked to religion required the state to prepare and train individuals in order for them to seek a place with god Political theory in the early modern era aimed to examine views of the state’s origins followed by philosophers who were concerned with the state’s organisation and functions Political theory in the midtwentieth century focused primarily on state institutions making the concept of power the central issue of the state Three key streams may be identified in the development and evolution of political thought Classical political theory modern po Classical political theory arose in ancient Greek society through the writings of Socrates Plato and Aristotle and lasted until the early nineteenth century According to Sheldon Wolin the classical paradigm in political philosophy consisted of the following 1 A philosophical pursuit to establish a rational basis for belief a politically inspired pursuit to establish a rational basis for action Classical political theory aimed at acquiring reliable knowledge about matters concerning the people a philosophical pursuit to establish a rational basis for belief a politically inspired pursuit to establish a rational basis for action 2 The Greek polis the Roman res publica and the mediaeval age usage of commonweal all suggested a sharing of what was common among the people as partners 3 Its basic unit of analysis was always the political whole the bodypolitic the interconnected structure denoting activity relationship and belief activity relating to ruling warfare The institutionalstructural scientific positivistic empirical behavioural postbehavioural and Marxist approaches all fall within the umbrella of modern political theory These trends ruled the twentieth century for the most part Classical political theory was primarily philosophical normative idealistic and to some extent historical modern political theory on the other hand can be divided into two camps liberal which includes the individualistic elitist and pluralist and Marxist which includes the dialecticalmaterialist The whole classical heritage was dubbed uninteresting by modern political theory which began with the liberal position in the 15th16th century and later expressed itself in institutionalpositivist empiricalbehavioural and postbehavioural movements From Merriam and Key to Dahl Casswell and Easton their proponents emphasised the ‘present’ rather than the ‘past’ the ‘living’ rather than the ‘dull’ the ‘immediate’ rather than the’remote Highlighting the characteristic features of contemporary political theory David Held refers to the following 1 Contemporary political theory has been considered as a history of political thinking involving an endeavour to examine the historical meaning of texts 2 It has attempted to resurrect the discipline as a type of conceptual analysis establishing political theory as a systematic study on and classification of the meanings of fundamental forms and concepts such as sovereignty democracy and justice 3 It has been defined as the systematic elaboration of the underlying structure of our moral and political acts as well as the disclosure investigation and reconstruction of political value foundations 4 It has been revitalised as a method of debating abstract theoretical concerns and specific political issues 5 It has been promoted as a critique of all types of foundationalism whether promoted by postmodernists or liberal defenders As a result it acts as a catalys Political theory has progressed from a normative to a scientific state It is envisioned as a synthesis of history philosophy and science as well as normativism and empiricism Political theory isn’t just a mirage it’s alive and well Its importance stems from the fact that it is a practical activity It provides us with not only a theory of man society or history but also a philosophy of action such as reform revolution or conservation Also read –.

The Nature of Political Theory. Explained

Political theory comprises constructs or models and principles that are meant to describe explain assess or project political systems institutions and relationships past present or future.

Nature and significance of political theory HKT Consultant

Nature of Political TheoryIssues in Political TheorySignificance of Political TheoryIt is generally believed that political thought is the general thought comprising of theories and values of all those persons or a section of the community who think and write on the daydoday activities policies and decisions of the state and which has a bearing on our present living These persons can be philosophers writers journalists poets political commentators etc Political thought has no ‘fixed’ form and can be in the form of treatise speeches political commentaries etc What is important about political thought is that it is ‘time bound’ since the policies and programmes of the governments change from time to time Thus we have Greek thought or Roman thought of ancient period or the political thought of the medieval ages7 Political theory on the other hand is the systematic speculation of a particular writer who talks specifically about the phenomena of the state This speculation is based on certain hypothesis which may or may not be valid and may be open to c The nature of political theory can also be understood from the kind of issues it has been grappling with during the long span of more than 2300 years Different political issues have been dominant in different epochs Classical political theory was primarily concerned with the search for a perfect political order As such it analysed the basic issues of political theory such as the nature and purpose of the state basis of political authority the problem of political obligation and political disobedience It was more concerned with what the state ought to be ie the ideal state The rise of modern nationstate and the industrial revolution gave birth to a new kind of society economy and polity Modern political theory starts from individualism and made liberty of the individual as the basic issue Hence it was concerned with issues like rights liberty equality property and justice for the individual how to create a state based upon individual consent and a right to change th The significance of political theory can be derived from the purpose it serves or supposed to serve and the task performed by it Political theory is a form of all embracing system of values which a society adopts as its ideal with a view to understand the political reality and if necessary to change it It involves speculation at higher level about the nature of good life the political institutions appropriate for its realization to what end the state is directed and how it should be constituted to achieve those ends The significance of political theory lies in providing the moral criteria that ought to be used to judge the ethical worth of a political state and to propose alternative political arrangements and practices likely to meet the moral standards The importance of political theory lies in providing i) a description of the political phenomena ii) a nonscientific (based upon philosophy or religion) or a scientific (based upon empirical studies) explanation iii) prop.