Genesis of State

Theories of Origin of State

• How the state came into existence is a subject of
[Link] theories have been
propounded by political and historical writers
regarding the genesis of state. These are :
[Link] Divine Origin Theory
[Link] Social Contract Theory
[Link] Force Theory
[Link] Patriarchal and Matriarchal Theories
[Link] Historical or Evolutionary Theory
[Link] Divine Origin Theory :
• It is the oldest theory regarding the origin of the state. This theory
was very popular in ancient times.
• Hindu thinkers regarded State as a divine institution. Muslim law
regarded King as a shadow of God.
• The Jews were the chief exponents of this theory. According to
them “The king owes responsibility to God alone for his acts”.
• The Greeks and Romans regarded state as a divine institution.
• The supporters of this theory believed that the King was given the
power to control and govern the people by the supreme power i.e.,
God.
• Kinship is hereditary. It is a sin to disobey the king.
2. The Force Theory Of The Origin of State :
• According to Leacock, Force theory means Government is the
outcome of human aggression. Force is the basis of the state.
• Herbert Spencer advocated the principle of the survival of the
fittest.
• There are various stages in the development of state
• Firstly there is a continued process of aggression. The conquerors
captured the properties of the defeated person.
• Secondly, the weaker are enslaved and exploited.
• In the third stage, there is co-operation between the conquerors and
conquered for mutual benefit. People united to fight against
common enemies
• In the fourth stage a government is formed for the settlement of
disputes.
• Mere force cannot maintain the state for a
long time.
• Might without right, can at best be only
temporary, might with right is a permanent
basis for the state.
• Force is short lived.
[Link] Patriarchal and Matriarchal Theory :
• According to this theory, the state is a product of a natural expansion of
family. One family gave rise to several families, a group of families united
to form a village, the village expanded into settlements and they united to
form the state.
• The idea of the patriarchal theory is given by Aristotle who said that the
state began with the most natural group, namely, the family with the
father as the head.
• Henry Maine is the strongest supporter of this theory. According to him
father is the head of the family and such family expanded into clan, the
clan into the tribe and finally the aggregation of tribes constitutes the
common wealth or state.
• Blood relationship played an important role in the origin of the state.
• The system of permanent marriage prevailed in primitive times and
paternity was an established fact.
The Matriarchal Theory
• This theory was propounded by Edwin Jenks and Morgan.
• Tribe is the earliest form of society. It is the oldest and primary
social group.
• According to this theory, the state is organized not in the family, but
in the Horde. The Horde was an unorganized tribe in which sexual
relations without any matrimonial intentions were common.
• In course of time the Horde left this practice and followed group
marriages and gradually they practiced polyandry. This institution of
polyandry led to the establishment of matriarchal families.
• Relationship was traced through the female line and even
succession of property is through female line only.
• Kinship traced through females.
[Link] Theory of Social Contract :
• Social Contract theory propagated that the state was a deliberate
creation of man. Popular consent was the basis of the state.
• The Social Contract theory states that state is not a growth, but a
make; it is not made by God, but deliberately and voluntarily
created by man.
• The state is the result of an agreement entered by men who
originally had no government.
• Different exponents agreed that state is a human creation, the
result of a contract.
• Hooker and Milton were supporters of this theory.
• During the latter half of the seventeenth century and in the
eighteenth century this theory was developed by most famous
exponents, Thomas Hobbes, John Locke and [Link].
Thomas Hobbes(1588-1679)
• His famous treatise “The Leviathan” justified the
absolute power of the sovereign.
• According to him life of the man in the state of
nature was ‘solitary, poor , brutish, nasty and short.
• The law of nature was ‘might is right’. The law of
nature is stated that men should be willing along
with the others to give up their natural rights.
• Men came out of the state of nature through a
contract. The contract as conceived by Hobbes
was between the people themselves to establish
a sovereign ruler.
• The sovereign himself was not a party to the
contract.
• According to him the freedom of expression was
the greatest evil.
• He did not made any distinction between the
state and the government
[Link] Locke(1632-1704) :
• John Locke, an opponent of absolute monarchy and
advocated constitutional government in his book ‘Two
Treatises on Civil Government’.
• According to him human nature is essentially social, rational
and moral. Human actions are guided by reason.
• In the state of nature, there was peace, goodwill, mutual
assistance and preservation.
• The state of nature was governed by laws of
nature,i.e.,Reason which is the law.
• According to him every individual was endowed with natural
rights of life, liberty and property.
• Man abandoned the state of nature because
[Link] common and independent arbiter to decide disputes.
[Link] was need for universal interpretation of the law of nature
[Link] had to be an authority to enforce decisions in agreement with
the law of the nature.
• Locke postulates two contracts : [Link] Contract [Link]
Contract.
• The social contract put an end to the state of nature and organized
a society for safeguarding life, liberty and property of individuals.
• Only one right was surrendered by the individual I.e. right of
interpreting and enforcing the law of nature.
• The Governmental contract was between the community and the
government.
• The people did not surrender their natural rights to the
sovereign
• Locke thus makes ‘consent’ the basis of government
and authority.
• Locke lays down the constitutional government, and he
distinguishes between the legislature and the
executive.
• Locke recognized the people’s right to revolution. To
him individual is prior to state.
• The government aims at the good of the community.
• The doctrine of Constitutional Monarchy is a great
contribution of Locke to political science.
[Link]’s Theory of Social Contract(1712-1776) :
• Rousseau explained this theory in his famous book ‘Social Contract’.
• According to him man is essentially good and sympathetic.
• Man in the state of nature was noble savage and lived an idyllic life.
• The natural man lead innocent life and with perfect freedom and
equality.
• He was not bound by any artificial laws and lived in highest
happiness.
• Rousseau says ‘original man had not the least notion of mine and
thine, no true of justice.
• Man is guided by a conscience and has two primal instincts 1. self
love 2. sympathy.
• There was no competition, no jealousy and no private property.
• With the increase in population, development of science and
technology, emergence of culture and property the peace of the
state of nature was vanished.
• By a social contract every one surrendered all his rights to the
community. The community became sovereign.
• Rousseau identified sovereignty with the general will of the
community.
• Law was the expression of the general will.
• Sovereignty resided in general will which was infallible, indivisible,
inalienable and absolute.
• The absolutism of Rousseau’s sovereign is based on consent.
• General will corresponds to the common interest of all the
members of the community. It aims at common good.
5. The Evolutionary or Historical Theory of Origin of State :
• This is the most acceptable theory regarding the origin of state.
• The state is a growth not a product ,state is an evolution and not an
artificial product. The state is a natural, gradual and evolved
institution.
• The origin of the state can be attributed to a number of factors.
These are
[Link]
[Link]
[Link]
[Link] Interests
[Link] Consciousness
[Link] : Family is the basic unit of kinship. The blood relationship is the
bond brought family members together.
• Blood bond accepted authority as legitimate.
• According to MacIver' Kinship creates society and society at length creates
the state’.
[Link] : Religion was more powerful since it brought people together on
the basis of common worship.
• It created a sense of solidarity and close relationship between religion and
politics.
[Link] : War and coercive force facilitated the creation of state. Individual
leadership was established and this leader had the power to use force.
[Link] Consciousness : The necessity of a common authority to settle
disputes, to establish law and order and the awareness of social and
political relations contributed to the organization of a state.
5. Economic Interests : Economic conditions determine the development of
political institutions. State originated to regulate economic activities.