Summary

Literature summary state, power and conflict

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Module
State, Power and Conflict (STPC)

Institution
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU)

summary of politics by Andrew Heywood (chapters, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 10, 11, 12, 17, 7 (only 161-170 ), what is power in global affairs by Joseph nye (chapter 1), the making of global international relations by acharya and buzan (chapter 1, 3, 5, 7, 9), articles from the course.

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Uploaded on November 7, 2023
Number of pages 149
Written in 2023/2024
Type Summary

politics
international relations

Institution
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU)
Education
Politicologie
Module
State, Power and Conflict (STPC)

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1. Summary - Literature summary state, power and conflict
2. Lecture notes - Extensive lecture notes state, power, and conflict
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Table of Contents
Ch1 Heywood .....................................................................................................................................2
Definitions: .....................................................................................................................................................2
Ch 2 Heywood ....................................................................................................................................8
Definitions ......................................................................................................................................................8
Chapter 3 Heywood .........................................................................................................................17
Definitions ....................................................................................................................................................17
Chapter 6 Heywood .........................................................................................................................23
Definitions ....................................................................................................................................................23
Chapter 4 Heywood .........................................................................................................................28
Definitions ....................................................................................................................................................28
Chapter 10 Heywood .......................................................................................................................39
Definitions ....................................................................................................................................................39
Chapter 11 Heywood .......................................................................................................................47
Definitions ....................................................................................................................................................47
Chapter 12 Heywood Groups, interests and movements.............................................................54
Definitions ....................................................................................................................................................54
Nye What is power in Global affairs. ............................................................................................61
Chapter 7 Heywood (161-170) ........................................................................................................65
Definitions ....................................................................................................................................................65
Heywood chapter 17 ........................................................................................................................69
Definitions ....................................................................................................................................................69
Acharya & Buzan Chapter 1 ..........................................................................................................77
Acharya & Buzan Chapter 3 ..........................................................................................................83
Acharya & Buzan Chapter 5 ..........................................................................................................87
Acharya & Buzan Chapter 7 ..........................................................................................................94
Acharya & Buzan Chapter 9 ........................................................................................................103
Lecture articles summary:............................................................................................................111
How to spot a populist ................................................................................................................................111
What makes a state a state? Why places like Kosovo live in limbo...........................................................113
This is how democracies die.......................................................................................................................113
Curing the virus of autocracy in Europe: Q+A with Daniel Kelemen: ......................................................114
America is full of ‘democracy deserts’. Wisconsin rivals Congo on some metrics ...................................114
Dutch elections show the promise and perils of proportional representation ............................................115
US targeting China’s Confucius Institute? .................................................................................................115
Globalization: the rise and fall of an idea that swept the world .................................................................116
Is EU enlargement to Ukraine and Moldova credible? ..............................................................................119
The Coup We Are Not Talking About .......................................................................................................120
Names from lectures: ....................................................................................................................123
Useful things to remember pour moi ...........................................................................................132

,Ch1 Heywood

Definitions:
Conflict:
- Competition, between opposing forces reflecting a diversity of opinions,
preferences, needs or interests
Authority
- Authority is power cloaked in legitimacy, there are three forms of power
o Traditional
§ Authority rooted in history
o Charismatic
§ Authority that stems from personality
o Legal-rational
§ Authority that is grounded in a set of rules
Power
- The ability to influence the behavior of others in a manner that is not of their
choosing
Civil society
- The realm of autonomous groups and associations (business, interest groups, clubs,
families etc.)
Consensus
- A broad agreement of which the terms are accepted by a wide range of individuals
or groups. Implies an agreement about fundamental or underlying principles as
opposed to a precise/exact agreement.
- Procedural consensus
o Willingness to make decisions through a process of consultation and
bargaining
- Substantive consensus
o Overlap of ideological positions that reflect agreement about broad policy
goals
Positivism
- The theory that social, and indeed all forms of, enquiry should adhere strictly to the
methods of the natural sciences
Comparative politics
- Disciplinary subfield
o ‘the politics of foreign countries’
- Method of analysis
o Identifying and exploring similarities and differences between political units
(states usually) to develop ‘grounded theories”, test hypotheses, infer causal
relationships, and produce reliable generalizations
Behavioralism
- The belief that social theories should be constructed only on the basis of observable
behavior, providing quantifiable data for research
Postmodernism
- Highlights the shift away from societies structured by industrialization and class
solidarity to increasingly fragmented and pluralistic ‘information’ societies. In these,

, individuals are transformed from producers to consumers, and individualism
replaces class, religious and ethnic loyalties
Post-positivism
- An approach to knowledge that questions the idea of an ‘objective’ reality,
emphasizing instead the extent to which people conceive, or ‘construct’, the world in
which they live
Transnational
- Configuration, which may apply to events, people, groups or organizations, that
takes little or no account of national governments or state borders

Defining politics
Politics is the activity of making, preserving, and amending the general rules under which
people live. It is an academic subject, but it is also linked to conflict and cooperation. People
often view politics as a process of conflict resolution, reconciling rival views or interests.
However, politics is better understood as a search for conflict resolution rather than its
achievement.

Politics is a loaded term, with many people assuming bias and seeing it as a dirty word. It is
defined in various ways, such as the exercise of power, government science, collective
decision-making, resource allocation, and deception. Even respected authorities cannot agree
on what politics is about, as it is defined in various ways.

From this perspective, politics may be treated as an 'essentially contested' concept, with a
number of acceptable or legitimate meanings. Two broad approaches to defining politics are
associated with an arena or location, where behavior becomes 'political' because of its
location, and a process or mechanism, where 'political' behavior exhibits distinctive
characteristics or qualities in any social context.

The debate about 'what is politics?' is worth pursuing because it exposes some of the deepest
intellectual and ideological disagreement in the academic study of the subject.

Politics as the art of government
Politics is an art, derived from the Ancient Greek term polis, meaning 'city-state'. It refers to
the affairs of the polis, which is now considered 'what concerns the state'. This definition has
been perpetuated by academic political science and is often used in everyday language.
However, this view is restricted to politics being practiced within a polity, a system of social
organization centered on government machinery. Politics is practiced in cabinet rooms,
legislative chambers, and government departments, and is engaged in by a limited group of
people, notably politicians, civil servants, and lobbyists. Most people, institutions, and social
activities can be considered 'outside' politics, as they are not involved in 'running the country'.

the realm of ‘the political’ is restricted to those state actors who are consciously motivated by
ideological beliefs, and who seek to advance them through membership of a formal
organization such as a political party.

The link between politics and the affairs of the state also helps explain why negative or
pejorative images have been attached to politics. Politicians are often seen as power-seeking
hypocrites who conceal personal ambition behind public service and ideological conviction.
This perception has become more common in the modern period as intensified media
exposure has brought to light examples of corruption and dishonesty, giving rise to the

, phenomenon of anti-politics. This rejection of the personnel and machinery of conventional
political life is rooted in a view of politics as a self-serving, two-faced, and unprincipled
activity.

However, political activity is an inevitable and permanent feature of social existence. Without
some mechanism for allocating authoritative values, society would disintegrate into a civil
war of each against all. The task is not to abolish politicians and bring politics to an end but
to ensure that politics is conducted within a framework of checks and constraints that
guarantee that governmental power is not abused.

Politics as public affairs
Politics can be viewed as a public or private sphere, with the distinction between the public
and non-political being rooted in Aristotle's work. The traditional distinction between public
and private life is based on the state and civil society, with the state responsible for collective
organization and funding. Civil society, on the other hand, consists of institutions like family
and kinship groups, private businesses, trade unions, clubs, and community groups that are
private and funded by individual citizens.

The public/private divide is often defined as the distinction between the political and the
personal, with civil society containing open institutions that are open to the public. This
broadens the notion of politics, transferring the economy from the private to the public realm.
However, this view does not infringe on personal affairs and institutions, as seen in feminist
thinkers who argue that politics should not take place in family, domestic life, or personal
relationships.

Politics as a public activity has both positive and negative images. In Aristotle's tradition,
politics is seen as a noble and enlightened activity, as it involves interaction among free and
equal citizens, giving meaning to life and affirming individual uniqueness. Theorists like
Jean-Jacques Rousseau and John Stuart Mill have portrayed political participation as a good
in itself, promoting personal, moral, and intellectual development.

However, politics as public activity has also been portrayed as unwanted interference, with
liberal theorists advocating for civil society over the state. This view may prevent people
from acting as they choose, such as in business, sports, and family life.

Politics as compromise and consensus
The third conception of politics focuses on the decision-making process rather than the arena
in which it is conducted. Politics is seen as a means of resolving conflict through
compromise, conciliation, and negotiation, rather than force and naked power. This view is
traced back to Aristotle's belief that 'polity' is the ideal system of government, combining
aristocratic and democratic features. Bernard Crick, a leading modern exponent of this view,
defined politics as 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 survival of the whole community. Critics argue that Crick's conception of politics is
heavily biased towards the form of politics that takes place in western pluralist democracies,
which has little to tell us about one-party states or military regimes. Despite this, politics can
be seen as a civilized and civilizing force, and people should be encouraged to respect and
engage in their own community's political life.

Faces of power

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