INTRO TO POLITICS

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Introduction to Politics

Lengua Inglesa 6 2023

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How would you define "politics"?

How would you define "politics"?

What is liberalism?

The intellectual founders of liberalism were the English philosopher John Locke (1632–1704), who developed a theory of political authority based on natural individual rights and the consent of the governed, and the Scottish economist and philosopher Adam Smith (1723–90), who argued that societies prosper when individuals are free to pursue their self-interest within an economic system based on private ownership of the means of production and competitive markets, controlled neither by the state nor by private monopolies.source: Britannica.com

Liberalism: political doctrine that takes protecting and enhancing the freedom of the individual to be the central problem of politics. Liberals typically believe that government is necessary to protect individuals from being harmed by others, but they also recognize that government itself can pose a threat to liberty.

What is the Social Contract?

Social contract theory is rightly associated with modern moral and political theory and is given its first full exposition and defense by Thomas Hobbes. After Hobbes, John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau are the best known proponents of this enormously influential theory, which has been one of the most dominant theories within moral and political theory throughout the history of the modern West.source: Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Social contract theory, nearly as old as philosophy itself, is the view that persons’ moral and/or political obligations are dependent upon a contract or agreement among them to form the society in which they live.

Listening task

In the following video, we will learn about the discipline of politics and its relationship with power. Read the questions before watching the video. What strategies will you employ while watching the video?

QUESTIONS

1. What is politics?

Politics is the study of power, but a special kind of power, the power that humans exert over one another.

2. What example is given to illustrate the use of political power?

A cannon, which is powerful, but its power is only physical until a human takes control. It’s then when the power’s cannon turns from physical to political.

3. What kind of questions does the discipline of politics ask about power?

What is it? Who should have it and under what conditions? When should it be exercised? In what way? For whom? Is it more important that it is fair or effective?

QUESTIONS

4. How do you relate the origin of your device to this video?

The relation is power. Power is probably the most important component in my device as people who made it did it by following rules from their companies, which were following the laws set down by countries, which are living side by side with other nations in the dangerous international system.

5. What is the origin of power in the form of political theory?

It’s traced back to Ancient Greece.

6. How do Aristotle’s and Thucydides’ views differ?

Aristotle thought that it is our nature to live in societies and to have power over one another, and that how we arrange is up to us, while Thucydides looked at the realities of power relations between states writing “the strong do what they will, the weak suffer what they must”.

QUESTIONS

7. Who are the main proponents of the social contract theory?

Thomas Hobbes, John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau

8. What did social contract theorists think about government?

They argued that government was sonly legitimate if the people want to be controlled. They also claimed that governments had no automatic right to govern, rather people have a right to be governed in the manner of their choosing.

POST-LISTENING

Find collocations for the following word and write 5 sentences using different collocations. VERB + POWER

come to, rise to When did this government come to power? | assume, seize, take The Crown prince assumed power in his father's place. | restore sb to, return sb to | have, hold The court has no power to order a psychiatric examination of the child's parents. They held power for 18 years. | share | exercise, use, wield | confer, give sb, grant sb The new law delegates many of these powers to school governors. | fall from, lose They fell from power in 1992. | give up, relinquish, renounce | delegate, devolve

group work!

"Man is a political animal"

- ARISTOTLE