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Government and Our Lives

Government and Our Lives. Unit 1. “Man is by nature a political animal; it is his nature to live in a state” -Aristotle 335 B.C. Sec.1: State as a Basic Political Unit.

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Government and Our Lives

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  1. Government and Our Lives Unit 1

  2. “Man is by nature a political animal; it is his nature to live in a state” -Aristotle 335 B.C.

  3. Sec.1: State as a Basic Political Unit • A. State – a political community that occupies a definite territory and has an organized gov’t w/ the power to make and enforce laws w/o approval from any higher authority. • 1. Also called: Country, nation-state and nation. (any group united by common bonds of race, language, customs, religion, etc.) • 2. Currently 194 • Largest Population: China • Largest Territory: Russia

  4. B. Essential Features of the state • 1) Population=people, citizens • a) States where population shares a general political and social consensus have most stable gov’ts. • b) Gov’ts affected by population mobility (movement). • c) Gov’ts affected by pop. composition. • 2) Territory= boundaries w/ land, water, nat. resources • a) Disputes over territory lead to war/conflict.

  5. 3) Gov’t=Institution through which state maintains social order, provides public services and enforces binding decisions. • a) Different levels (National vs. Local) • b) Levels’ Relationships Classified • 1)Unitary: All powers on fed. level (FR, GB) • 2)Federal: Divides powers between fed and state levels (US, Mex, Canada) • 3)Confederate: alliance of indep. states w/ a weak central gov’t., states have supreme authority w/ exception of a few delegated things. • a) US: Articles of Confed. and CSA

  6. 4) Sovereignty: Supreme and absolute authority within its territorial boundaries. • a) power to make/enforce laws, shape foreign policy, defend itself. • b) Technically AZ is not a state. Why?

  7. C. Origins of the State • 1. Force Theory: strong overpowered the weak. • 2. Evolutionary Theory: Families to clans to tribes to states. • 3. Divine Right Theory: royal power came from God. • 4. Social Contract Theory: people agree to give up unbridled freedom to create a state w/ order to protect all. • a. Developed by Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau: revolutionary thinking against Divine Right. • b. Based on Natural Rights Philosophy (Hobbes)

  8. 1) Life under nat. law brutally harsh due to man’s survival instinct: Conflict resulted. • 2) Result, man created a state w/ a gov’t whereby people give consent to be ruled. • 3) Man born w/ Natural Rights (life, liberty, property) • 4) Gov’t was created to protect these rights. • 5) Must give up some freedom in order to get security, peace and order.

  9. 6) Man enters into agreement w/ others in society, known as Social Contract. • 7) Gov’t gets its right to govern from consent of the governed. • 8) If Gov’t does not protect natural rights, people should abolish it. • 9) Hobbes – The Leviathon – absolute ruler could offer best protection. • C. Man’s Original Dilemma: Freedom vs. Order • D. Man’s Modern Dilemma: Freedom vs. Equality

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