Lecture notes
What is Politics
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These notes are a detailed summary of the first week of POL1004F at UCT: What is Politics.
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What is PoliticsCreated @February 17, 2022 7:38 PM
Class POL1004F
Type Lecture
Materials What is Politics 1 ppt.pptx
Reviewed
Key Issues
what are the defining features of politics as an activity?
how has ‘politics’ been understood by various thinkers and traditions?
can the study of politics be scientific?
what are the main approaches to the study of politics as an academic discipline?
what roles do concepts, models, and theories play in political analysis?
Political Studies as a Discipline
politics: the activity/process through which people make, preserve, amend the general
rules under which they live
power: the ability to influence the behaviour of others (one actor having influence over
another)
can be legitimate (e.g. democratically elected government)
can be illegitimate (e.g. Israeli-occupied Palestine)
politics is both the activity (lowercase) and the study of it (uppercase)
the study of politics can be called Politics, Political Studies or Political Science
What is Politics 1
, the issue of conflict and cooperation is integral to politics (how do people solve —or
manage—their disagreements
it is difficult to define politics because there are already so many associations with the
term, and it is difficult to agree on which is correct
My definition of politics: politics is an activity (or the study thereof) wherein people try to
deal with and/or solve the conflicts which prevent them from living amicably. It involves the
making and changing of social rules
Four Conceptions of Political Studies
he way politics is conceived affects how politics is studied.
the way politics is conceived affects how politics is studied
two main approaches to politics are defining it as an arena (where) or as a process (how)
Politics as an Art of Government
politics as an arena
most classical/well-known conception of politics
rooted in Greek term polis which means city-state
focuses on the collective decisions manage society
reliant on government authority (narrow conception because it only looks at government)
authority: the right to influence behaviour (when power is handed over legitimately)
“politics is not a science... but an art” - chancellor Bismarck
Politics as Public Affairs
What is Politics 2
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