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POLITIC
S AND
THE STATE
Sociologist - argue that
political
sociology is the
According to:
study
of POWER .
DOWSE and HUGHES :
* “ politics is “POWER
Any
involv
social es POWER political
relationship
Political relationship
Would extend from
A belief in rightness
Subordinates are controlled
2. TRADITONAL by
feeling of loyalty
AUTHORITY Based on the acceptance
of a set of impersonal
rules
3. RATIONAL- Those who posses
authority are able to
LEGAL issues commands
Obeyed because they
AUTHORITY accept the legal frame-
work of their authority
STEVEN LUKES(1974) - a radical
view
• He argues that power has
three
Decisi dimensions or faces
Shapin
Non-
on Decision g
Makin Making Desire
g
-Where Exercising * Manipulating the
different power do so wishes
individuals by preventing and desire of
or group those who take social group.
express a decision •May be persuaded
the making from to accept
Lukes‘s definition of
power
PO WER IS EX ER CI SED
OVER THOS E WH O ARE
HARMED BY ITS U SE,
WH ETER TH EY ARE
AWAR E THEY ARE
HAR MED OR NOT .
The
STATE
Definition and development of the STATE
Weber defined - “ a human
community
that (successfully) claims the
monopoly of the legitimate use
physical force within a given
From some sociologists:
State are consisting
Welfare ofservices,
a wider set of in
include : Education ,
Health services ,
Government and civic
* POWER- A FUNCTIONALIST PERSPECTIVE
specific interests.
POLITICAL PARTIES :
Are organizations which
attempt to get representatives
elected to positions in
parliaments or their local
*equivalent.
Pluralist claims that competition
for office between political parties
provides the electorate with an
opportunity to select its leaders
Pluralists claim that political parties
are democratic societies.
for the following
reasons:
1. the public directly influences party
policy : must
reflect the wishes and interest of the
2. if existing parties do not sufficiently
represent
sections of society- new party will
3. parties are accountable to the
electorate
4. Parties cannot simply represent
sectionalist
* PLURALISM -- A CRITIQUE
2. T hey d o n ot c oncentrate
exclusiv ely
Acording to
MARX:
Power is concentrated in the hands of
those who have economic control
within a society.
MARX and
ENGELS:
the source of power lies in the
economic
infrastructure:
1. All class- Production are owned and
divided controlled by the ruling class.
societies
2. Communi Power are equally
st distributed among the whole
society population
T he f oll owi ng r easons gi ven for the
r el ativ e autonom y of the ca pi tali st sta te:
According to BOTTOMORE
:
= The earth’s become more concentrated than
ever before and as consequence, upper class
and elites have become increasingly dominant
1. The 3. The
2. The
economi cultural-
political
c ideological
These correspond to the practices of :
DIFFUSEDPOWER - it involves
power
relationship , but ones which
operate
FRASER believes that modern assumption
about public sphere need to be
replaced by postmodern ones.
should
involve:
•The elimination of the inequalities
between
social groups
•The acceptance and encouragement of