THE STATE

Introduction to Political ScienceWeek 9

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• How was politics defined in Chapter 1?

• What were the four different views of politics?

• Why is studying the state important for the students of Political Science?

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• What is the state?– The state is a political association that establishes

sovereign jurisdiction within defined territorial borders, and exercises authority through a set of permanent institutions.

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• Three perspectives to define the state:1) Idealist Perspective: • Advocated by Hegel. (1770-1831)• Hegel considers the state as an ethical ideal and the

highest expression of human freedom.

– What is altruism? • Putting aside your own interests for the good of others.

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2) Functionalist Perspective: • The state is needed to maintain social order and

solidarity.

– What is solidarity? • Solidarity means to be aware of the fact that our well-

being is tied to others’ well-being. • Solidarity brings obligations for everyone.

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3) Organizational Perspective:• The state as the apparatus of government in its broadest

sense. The institutions of government are the bureaucracy, the military, the police, the courts, the social security system.

• Five key features of the state:– The state is sovereign.– State institutions are public.– The state functions as a way to legitimize any decisions/actions

of governmental institutions. – The state is an instrument of domination. (Coercion, authority

to use legitimate violence)– The state is a territorial association.

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• The differences between state and government:– The state is more extensive than government. Government is

part of the state, while state includes all public institutions. – The state is a permament entity. Government’s life span is

subjected to the results of elections. – Government is the means through which the authority of the

state is exercised. – The state exercises impersonal(neutral) authority. – The state represents the permanent interests of society

while the government represents the partisan sympathies of those who vote for the same political party.

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• Four theories of the state:– The Pluralist state:– The Capitalist state:– The Leviathan state:– The Patriarchal state:

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The Pluralist State

• The pluralist theory of the state is drawn upon liberalism.

• The state acts like a referee in society. • This theory also rests on the arguments of

social contract theorists such as John Locke, Thomas Hobbes and Jean Jacques Rousseau.

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Social Contract Theory

• The state of nature comples individuals to make a voluntary agreement in order to organize their community.

• Social contract develops out of the explicit/implicit consent.

• The state of nature:– Full of dangers, insecurities and disorder because

every individual is a potential threat to other individuals.

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• Thomas Hobbes (1588-1699):– Individuals are self-interested. – Life is anarchic. – Therefore, the state exists in order to protect each

citizen from their fellow citizens. – Hobbes believes in the absolute authority of the

state. – For Hobbes, social contract is made/emerges out

of fear.

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• John Locke (1632-1704): – For Locke, the state exists in order to defend the rights

of each individuals. – According to him, there are three natural rights

• Life• Liberty• Property

– The state is obliged to protect these rights, thus the state’s authority is limited.

– For Locke, social contract is based on the consent of individuals.

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• Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778):– Rousseau argues for a collective notion of the

state.– For him, social contract is made between citizens

and the state. – Citizens in a society give up their freedom for the

good of the general will (common good). – General will is not the total sum of will of all. It is

rather a collective ideal defined by the leadership in a given society.

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The Capitalist State

• The notion of a capitalist state draws upon Marxist theory.

• According to the Marxist theory, the state is developed out of class struggle. Therefore, the state is a way of economic organization, and an instrument for the oppression of the working class by the capitalist/bourgeoisie.

• Every state is a form of class dictatorship whether it is bourgeoisie or proletariat dictatorship.

• The state reflects the class divisions in a society, and the modern state is a manifestation of a capitalist society.

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• Antonio Gramsci (1891-1937): – Gramsci argues that the state maintains its authority and

legitimacy through its ideological hegemony achieved by intellectual leadership and cultural manipulation.

• Neo-Marxists, on the other hand, abandoned the idea that the state is developed by the class struggle between the capitalist and working class. They posit that the interests of the ruling class is not uniform. – Thus, the state is a dynamic organization through which

competing groups and interests struggle for domination and hegemony.

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The Leviathan State

• The New Right or neoliberal movement developed this notion of leviathan state.

• According to this view, the state threatens individual liberty as well as private property and the idea of modern economy that is based on free market.

• The state pursues its own interests and imposes its own authority to the society.

• Thus, for the New Right, the state is a monster (leviathan) which must be kept away from intervening to society and economy in the name of regulating economic and social relations in a given society.

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• The oversupply thesis:– Due to electoral competition and the popular

demands politicians are tend to overspend (populism)

– Due to the interests of state institutions and bureacrats (big government)

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The Patriachal State

• Dependent upon feminist theory of the state. • Feminist theory posits that the state and its

institutions are formed on the basis of male domination in the family, in society and in the economic system.

• What does Patriarchy mean? – Rule by the father (Devlet Baba)– Govern by the principles of gender differences (gender

inequality) – The state is run by men and for men

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• Liberal Feminists– They think that gender inequality can be eliminated as

long as all groups including women have access to state institutions/power and able to express their views freely.

• Radical Feminists– They think that state power reflects a deeper systematic

structure of oppression in the form of patriarchy. – In this sense, a female state official is no different from a

male state official unless she defies the rules of patriarchy. – They also object to the professional roles given to women

in society and in the state.

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The role of the state

The role of the state is defined in accordance with the extent of state intervention to society and individual life. Min. Intervention Max. Intervention

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Minimal State

Developmental State

Social Democratic State

Collectivized State

Totalitarian State

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The Minimal State:– This notion of state is proposed by liberal theory. (Promoted by

Thatcher in UK and Reagan in USA)– Individual freedom comes before the state authority– The state has to be limited and minimal in order to prevent any

violation of individual rights by state’s actions. – The state is minimal whereas civil society is larger.– The state should only exercise three functions: 1) Maintaining domestic order (Police force)2) Acting as a referee for the problems between private citizens

(Courts)3) Protecting against external threats (Army)

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• The Developmental State: – A developmental state intervenes in economy with the

specific purpose of promoting industrial growth and economic development.

– Aims to construct a partnership between the state and business interests.

– Economic growth and development are the major national interests and the state strives to increase economic growth, find new markets for national companies and become more competitive in the international arena.

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• The Social Democratic State:– The social democratic state intervenes into economic as well

as social structures in order to maintain social justice and fair distribution of economic wealth.

– The state intervention is not condemned. – The negative view of state is replaced by a more positive

view. – The difference betw. Developmental and social democratic

state is that the priority of the developmental state is economic growth and international competitiveness, while the social democratic state focuses on the fair distribution of wealth.

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• The Collectivized State:– In a collectivized state economic life is under the

control of the state. – Centralized economic planning – Common ownership over private property. (Statism)– Statism is the belief that state intervention is the

most appropriate means of social justice and economic development.

– Thus, the state comes before individuals.

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• The Totalitarian State:– Built upon the idea of “all embracing state”– Absolute authority in and the most extreme

intervention of state to social, economic, cultural, religious and family affairs.

– State as Big Brother (1984 George Orwell) – Civil society is eliminated and the sphere of

private life is minimum or abolished.

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• Welfare State• Competitive State• Weak State• Failed State• Rogue State

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Concluding Remarks

– What are the main trends in the era of globalization?• New international actors• Transnationalization of economy • Spread of different cultures • The rise of international migration • The growing importance of international/supranational

organizations (Political globalization)

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• What are the implications of globalization for the state?– How do you think the state is affected by the

process of globalization?• The state is a political association that establishes

sovereign jurisdiction within defined territorial borders, and exercises authority through a set of permanent institutions.

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Thank you.kaanrenda@gmail.com

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