Hobbes — Social Contract
Hobbes: life without government is nasty, brutish, and short — need a Leviathan
Hobbes — Social Contract
Thomas Hobbes believed a strong sovereign is necessary to prevent chaos
State of nature = constant war of all against all. People surrender freedoms to a sovereign (the Leviathan) in exchange for security. Justifies absolute authority.
Locke — Natural Rights
Locke: life, liberty, property — government exists to protect these natural rights
Locke — Natural Rights
If government fails to protect rights, citizens may revolt
People are born with natural rights. Government is a contract: protect rights or lose legitimacy. Directly influenced Jefferson, the Declaration of Independence, and constitutional government.
Rousseau — General Will
Rousseau: people are naturally good — civilization corrupts, general will guides
Rousseau — General Will
Humans are good by nature; society distorts them
The general will represents what is truly best for the whole community. Influenced the French Revolution and democratic theory. Opposite of Hobbes: nature is peaceful, society is corrupting.
Marx — Historical Materialism
Marx: history is class struggle — capitalism will give way to communism
Marx — Historical Materialism
Economic class conflict drives all of history
Bourgeoisie (owners) exploit proletariat (workers). This contradiction leads to revolution → socialism → classless stateless communism. Influenced USSR, China, Cuba.
Utilitarianism
Utilitarianism: greatest good for the greatest number — Bentham and Mill
Utilitarianism
The ethical theory that judges actions by their outcomes
Jeremy Bentham: pleasure and pain are the only relevant factors. Actions are right if they maximize overall happiness. John Stuart Mill refined it. Consequentialism: only outcomes matter, not intentions or rules.
Plato — The Republic
Plato's Republic: philosopher-kings should rule. Democracy is mob rule. Justice = each doing their proper function.
Plato — The Republic
The foundational text of Western political philosophy
Plato (428-348 BC): ideal state ruled by philosopher-kings — those with wisdom and virtue. Three classes: guardians (rulers), auxiliaries (military), producers (everyone else). Allegory of the Cave: most people see only shadows of truth. Critiques democracy as rule by those without knowledge.
Aristotle — Politics
Aristotle: man is a political animal. Mixed constitution best — avoids tyranny of one, few, or many.
Aristotle — Politics
Empirical approach to political science — classified 158 constitutions
Aristotle (384-322 BC): humans naturally form political communities. Three good forms: monarchy, aristocracy, polity. Three corrupt forms: tyranny, oligarchy, democracy. Best practical: mixed constitution (polity) — combines elements of oligarchy and democracy. Middle class is stabilizing force.
Machiavelli — The Prince
Machiavelli: The Prince — better to be feared than loved. Ends justify means in politics.
Machiavelli — The Prince
The first modern political theorist — separated politics from morality
Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527): successful rulers must be willing to use force and deception when necessary. Virtu (skill and decisiveness) + Fortuna (luck/circumstances). Better to be feared than loved — but don't be hated. Lions and foxes: force and cunning. Separated political analysis from Christian ethics.
Classical Liberalism
Liberalism core values: individual rights, limited government, rule of law, free markets, tolerance
Classical Liberalism
The political tradition that underlies most Western democracies
Not 'liberal' in the American political sense. Classical liberalism: individual liberty is the highest political value. Government must be limited and consent-based. Rule of law: government bound by law like everyone else. Key thinkers: Locke, Smith, Mill, Tocqueville. Foundation of constitutional democracy and human rights.
Conservatism — Burke
Conservatism: tradition, order, gradual change. Burke: society is a partnership between the dead, living, and unborn.
Conservatism — Burke
Edmund Burke's response to the French Revolution founded modern conservatism
Edmund Burke (1729-1797): society is an organic partnership across generations. Radical change destroys accumulated wisdom embedded in traditions and institutions. Reform must be gradual and cautious. Hierarchy and order are natural. 'The state ought not to be considered as nothing better than a partnership agreement in a trade.'
The Social Contract Tradition
Social contract: individuals give up some freedom to government in exchange for security and order
The Social Contract Tradition
Three very different versions of the same fundamental idea
All three agree: legitimate government rests on consent of the governed. Hobbes: rational self-interest drives people to accept absolute sovereign to escape the state of nature. Locke: government protects pre-existing natural rights — can be overthrown if it fails. Rousseau: the general will represents the common good.
John Rawls — A Theory of Justice
Rawls: veil of ignorance — design society not knowing your place in it → justice as fairness
John Rawls — A Theory of Justice
The most influential political philosophy of the 20th century
John Rawls (1971): imagine choosing principles for society behind a 'veil of ignorance' — not knowing your race, class, gender, abilities. Rational people would choose: equal basic liberties (first principle) and inequalities allowed only if they benefit the least advantaged (difference principle). Foundation of modern liberal egalitarianism.