What is Civics?
A branch of political science which
focuses on the study of the rights
and duties of citizens.
Rights and duties presupposes a
reciprocal give (obligation) and
take (receive) relationship.
Citizen
: a person’s membership into a
political community
Political (politic)
: the social
relationship involving government
power
(the
ability
of one to get
another to act in accordance with the
first’s intentions) and/or
authority
(the
right
to use power).
The process in which government
makes and carries out decisions. (How
does it use its power?)
Legitimacy
In all human relationships, power is found. Doctor/patient, car-mechanic/car owner, bully/bullied, police officer/citizen
But some have the right to power through
legitimacy (conferred or agreed upon power).
Why do we confer power on any one person or group?
Why do we give power to another? What is gained? Instead of answering the above question, let’s
What if there was no
government?
Assignment:
-
One Page Essay (Paragraphs)
-
Introduction: Introduce the topic
-
what is the topic (a time without
government)?
-
Insert your Thesis Statement
(Answer the question…the purpose
of your essay.)
-
Body: Evidence to support your thesis
(Explains why your thesis is a factual
statement)
-
Conclusion: What is to be understood
or learned from this essay?
-
What if government just stopped in
Thomas Hobbes
(1588-1679)
English Political Writer Pro-Monarchy. Why?
English Civil War (1641-1651)
Early Enlightenment writer/thinker.
The Leviathan
When was it written?
What is a civil war?
What would life be like during a civil war? Why?
Thomas Hobbes was one of the earliest Enlightenment thinkers.
The Enlightenment: A period of intellectual thought that used reason and logic (scientific method) to be applied to politics and society to challenge traditional belief systems (to improve society).
Period from 1650 to 1800.
Primary source vs. Secondary Source
Primary Source: a physical source (documents, creative work, artifact) from the time period under study.
The State of Nature
A hypothetical condition of humanity before the creation of
state, government, legitimate authority, and law. (Hypothetical: Define?)
The State of Nature => Need for a legitimate authority
Hobbes political philosophy (attempt to acquire knowledge by a
logical means about topics that are not based in scientific fact) or belief was that “the Leviathan” (great power) should be a Monarch (king). Government serves to protect us from the natural state.
Natural rights- individuals are born with natural rights that their mind and body are capable of doing. Hobbes would argue that “every man has the right to every thing” in the state of nature. Self-preservation is at the center of those powers.
Law creates an obligation and duty to another (to society) because it forbids an action that we would otherwise “naturally” choose.
We must give (duty) our natural rights (freedoms and liberties) to the government (authority) in order to be removed from the state of nature (right) and continues to promote our self-preservation.
Functions of
Government
1. Maintain Order: Secure the people and their property within the
state. Creation of and enforcement of laws (Resolve Conflicts among citizens through different systems put in place).
2. Provide Services: Public services (education), projects (highway
system), and policies (Medicare).
3. Ensure National Security: Guard its territory by providing foreign
diplomacy and defense.
4. Provide for the Public Good (General Welfare): Balance the
“Public Good” of all the select populations within the nation.
Regulate (regulation: constrains rights and defines responsibility), research, use of resources.
o An abstract process for determining what is the public good.
o Public Policy: government action to achieve a community goal o Budget: plan for collecting and spending money to achieve public
Theories of Rule
Why do we grant some members of society the power to rule us over other members? Where does the right to rule stem?
1. Divine Right: the ruler is chosen by God. A ruler receives
their authority and rules on behalf of a divine being.
2. Natural Law (Rights): the belief that the natural world
has a natural order (possibly derived from God). That order provides for Natural Rights (man’s power). In
order to have self-preservation, we allow a government to exist to protect us from ourselves.
3. Social Contract: legitimate authority is a result of the
Types of Government
1. Authoritarian: power is held by an individual or group who are not accountable to the people they govern.
A. Autocracy
Rule belongs to a single individual.
a) Absolute Monarchy: government with
hereditary ruler
- Unlimited authority
- Example: King Louis XIV
b) Dictatorship: removal by opposition
- no means for new leader
B. Oligarchy
Ruled by a few or small group.
2) Democracy
Government by which the people rule
Etymology: Greek- Demos = “people, mob, or many”
Kratos = “rule or power”
A) Direct Democracy (Pure Democracy): power is
placed in the assembly of all citizens who participate.
- Ancient Athens: citizens (free males) would meet
on a hill to discuss and vote on policy.
B) Representative
Democracy
Citizens choose a smaller group of citizens to represent and govern on their behalf.
Majority Rule: the doctrine that the numerical majority of an organized group can make decisions that bind the whole group.
Plurality: system in which the winner is the person with the most votes, even if s/he does not receive a majority.
Problems?
A Republic…”And to the Republic for which it stands…”
Parliamentary Form: A system of government in which the ministers of the executive branch get their legitimacy from the legislature, and are accountable to that body such that the executive and legislative branches are run by the same political party.
Executive is the Prime Minister
Elected by the legislature which is elected by the people
Governments in b/t the
Spectrum
A) Theocracy: Political power is controlledby religious leaders.
B) Constitutional Monarchy: Monarch
limited by a constitution and laws.
14
th
Amendment
All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the
jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the
United States and of the State they reside.
Who are citizens?
Losing citizenship:
Improperly obtained citizenship
Aliens: non-citizens within
the borders
Immigrant: person who moves to a new country.
Emigrant: person who moves from a country.
Legal immigrants get most services that citizens get except: no jury duty, no vote, no federal government jobs, and have to carry an I.D. card.
A Nation
A nation can refer to a country.
A nation can refer to a community or people who share a common territory or government.
A nation can refer to an ethnic group with a common language, race, religion, or history.
Sweden is 81% Swedes Denmark is 90% Danes
Nationalism
1. the positive attitude members have
towards their national identity.
2. The actions that members of a nation take
when seeking to achieve
United States- What is a
State?
State: a political unit with the power to make and enforce laws over a group of people living within a clearly defined territory.
Defined by population, territory, and sovereignty Sometimes called: country or “nation-state”
States are politically organized => Have a government with sovereign power
Sovereignty: supreme or ultimate political
What does all of this
mean for us?
Politically, the United is pulled in many directions.
How big is our government?
What powers should the government have? What rights should the people have?
We need to understand:
Our foundations and traditions The system we’ve created
Alternatives to our system/How to make changes
