Western Political Thought and Philosophers

The Political Philosophy

Political thought is one of the most important aspects of the study of politics. It provides a
theoretical and philosophical understanding of the basics of political science. Most of the part of
political thought is concerned with some of the fundamental issues related to politics such as
understanding the meaning and the nature of the state, government and citizens; political
obligation, authority, freedoms and duties etc. The state, government and the citizenry are the
prime focus of political philosophy.

THE GREEK PERIOD

tradition of political theory is the basis of the beginning of political philosophy since ancient
Greek period dealing with some of the most basic questions of political nature. What is the state
and why should I obey it?

Socrates (469-399 B.C.)

The Father of Western Philosophy, was a soldier, politician, and stonemason, before becoming a
philosopher. Socrates devoted his later life to discussions that questioned the truth about popular
opinions. Socrates did not have his own definition of truth, he only believed in questioning what
others believed as truth. He believed that genuine knowledge came from discovering universal
definitions of the key concepts, such as virtue, piety, good and evil, governing life. Socrates
wrote nothing down, so detailed information about him comes from his students, such as Plato.
In Plato’s Apology, the central features of Socrates' approach to philosophy and its relationship to
life are explained as:
1. Ironic modesty. "No one is wiser than you."
2. Questioning habit. The goal of Socratic interrogation is to help individuals to achieve genuine
self-knowledge.
3. Devotion to truth. "The unexamined life is not worth living" Socrates would rather die than
give up philosophy.
4. Dispassionate reason. Even after being sentenced to death, Socrates calmly continued to
reason out the question of the fate of a human being after death.
• "Know thyself."
• "The only thing I know is that I know nothing."
• "Ignorance is the only evil."
• Focused on the big question: What is good and what is evil?
• Believed that if he asked enough people, he would find out the truth.
• Developed the Socratic method — trying to find truth by asking and answering questions.
• Accused and found guilty of corrupting young minds. Sentenced to death by drinking
 hemlock (poison).

Plato (428-354 BCE)

Athens, Greece
Plato was born to a wealthy family and was a student of the great philosopher Socrates. After the
death of his teacher Plato founded the first university, called the Academy. There, students
focused on important questions such as "What is the self?" and "What is human nature?"
Aristotle was one of his star pupils.
He also believed that a philosopher's job is to open people's eyes to the truth and help them
strive to be good and fair. Plato believed that men and women had the same intellectual powers,
and was one of the first to teach that women should receive the same education as men. Plato
also believed in an unseen world where there existed perfect models of all things on Earth. He
also held that society would be at its best, and remain stable and just, with philosophers in
power. Plato wrote down his teachings in the form of conversations called Dialogues. The most
famous of his Dialogues are "The Republic" and "The Death of Socrates.

Plato wrote his books in the form of dialogues—people talking about ideas, and sometimes
disagreeing about them. This makes Plato's books more interesting to read.
Socrates is usually the main person in Plato's dialogues. Usually, Socrates talks with people
about their ideas, and tries to see if they believe anything that is illogical. Other people in the
stories often become angry with Socrates because of this. People who study Plato argue about
whether Socrates really said the same things that Plato makes him say, or whether Plato just used
Socrates as a character, to make the ideas he was talking about seem more important.
Plato opposed the rhetoric of sophism and insisted true justice and equality
Plato attached equal importance on promotion of education as a means for removing hindrances
from the path of the statesman. Education is the positive means by which the ruler can shape
human nature in the right direction to produce a harmonious state.
He frankly assumes that the state is first and foremost an educational institution. From Plato’s
point of view, with a good system of education almost any improvement is possible; if education
is neglected, it matters little what else the state does. So much was the importance given to the
cause of education that about one-third of the Republic is devoted to the scheme of education. In
fact, Rousseau declared the Republic as one of the greatest treatise on education ever written.
He stood for a state-controlled compulsory system of education.
Plato also gave the ideas of Communism. Plato’s communism takes two main forms. The first is
the prohibition of private property, whether houses or land or money to the rulers. They shall live
in barracks and have their meals at a common table. The second is the abolition of a permanent
monogamous sexual relation and the substitution of regulated breeding at the behest of the rulers
for the purpose of securing the best possible offspring. This communism, however, applies only
to the guardian class.
In more simple words, the guardians would not possess any gold or silver. They would only have
the small amount of property that was necessary .
Plato was critical of personal family life because of two reasons: a) family affairs too frequently
distort the attention and undermine the integrity of rulers. Family encourage the negative
emotions of hatred, selfishness, avarice and envy; and b) he was dismayed by the secondary
position of women within the family. He accepted that men and women were identical in
natural capabilities and moral worth. He accepted women as legislators and rulers.
Conventional marriage led to subordination, subjugation and seclusion of women.

Aristotle (384-322 BCE.)

Aristotle was a genius well-versed in a number of disciplines, Aesthetics, Biology, Ethics,
Logics, Physics, Politics and Psychology. But, his chief contribution lies in the field of study of
politics and political philosophy.
Aristotle was born at Stagirius, a Greek colony on the coast of Thrace. His father was the court
physician for the king of Macedonia. When he was 17, Aristotle was sent to Athens to study at
Plato's Academy. He stayed at the Academy for 20 years both as a student and then as a teacher.
Aristotle is known as the best and the first Platonist. He sat under the feet of Plato for twenty
long years
After Plato died in 347, Aristotle left Athens, eventually ending up in Macedonia, where he
became the tutor of Alexander (the Great), son of the Macedonian king. When Alexander became
king in 335, Aristotle returned to Athens to establish his own school called the Lyceum. At the
Lyceum, discussions were held while the teachers and students walked around the grounds of the
school, earning it the name of the "peripatetic", or walking, school.
Aristotle’s political philosophy was both a critique and a corrective of Plato’s ideas. He
stood for the segregation of the political life from that of family. He regarded family as the
natural institution that help stabilising the state rather than being an obstacle. Likewise, he
declared property as necessary attribute to spread goodness and philanthropy.
Aristotle also criticized Plato’s advocacy of rule of philosophy and the preference for
philosopher king over the statesmen. In its place, Aristotle professed constitutional rule, for it
not only check arbitrary power, but also ensure a periodic rotation of office bearers. Aristotle was
critical of denying any participation.
Lastly, the pragmatic and scientific understanding of Aristotle’s views on politics is reflected
from his reliance on a method that is different from his precedents.
The main characteristics of Aristotle’s method were:
Aristotle based his studies on facts. He was more concerned with the facts and was deeply
interested in collecting and examining them. He wanted a definite and scientific knowledge.
That is why he rejected the ideal state and proposed his own sketch of the practicable state.
He also employed comparative method of study in his writings. He had an extra-ordinary
knowledge of the political institutions both of his own times and of the past. He made a
comparative analysis of about 158 constitutions and then generalised his views about the
good/pure and the arbitrary/perverted forms of governments.
Aristotle’s Classification of Government is another great contribution in the field of
Political science made by Aristotle. Aristotle compiled this classification of governments in his
work ‘Politics’. The list of constitutions that Aristotle provided comprises of six forms. Ranged
in order of merit, they are: 1. Kingship; 2. Aristocracy; 3. Polity; 4. Democracy; 5. Oligarchy;
and 6. Tyranny.
For him, polity was the most preach able one. It is the form of government in which the middle
class wields power.
Aristotle has laid great stress on the role of middle class in an ideal state. This class brings
stability to the state and is most law-abiding. According to him, the addition of a large middle
class has a great setting influence and checks the opposite extreme. The strength of the middle
class should be more than that of the rich and the poor combined together
Lastly, the climate of an ideal state should be temperate and the character of the people should
be as high as that of the Greeks who have spirit, courage and intelligence to become civilized
people.
In the opening pages of Book III, Aristotle dealt with three topics. The nature of a state: the
citizenship; and the virtues of a good citizen.
Unlike Plato, who did not accept change and equated it with decay and corruption, Aristotle
regarded change as inevitable. Change represents a movement towards an ideal. Aristotle
accepted the possibility of progress.

Western Political thought in the Middle Ages

Machiavelli 1469 – 1527 AD
Machiavelli marked the end of the middle ages and beginning of the era of modern
political thought. Machiavelli represents many new tendencies in his political ideas which
have come to be regarded as a characteristic feature of the modern age
He introduces a set of new political ideas that lists his contribution to the development of
modern political thought.
However, Niccolo Machiavelli commanded sinister reputation as no other thinker in the
annals of political theory. He was called “the murderous Machiavelli” and damned
Machiavelli by Shakespeare. This was so because Machiavelli sanctioned the use of
deception, cruelty, force and violence for achieving the desired political ends.
But, if one tries to understand Machiavelli in context of his time, then he/she realises that
how much practical, original and progressive he was in his political philosophy.
Machiavelli was born in Florence, Italy on May 3, 1469. He joined the government of
Florence as secretary of chancery and handled the departments of war and interior and
diplomatic correspondence. . In 1513, he came out with his two works, ‘The Prince’ and
‘Discourses’.
Florence the one of the fine states of Italy – was the most cultured city and the seat of the
Italian Renaissance that produced some eminent and renowned figures. It was the first
modern state in the world. Italy produced some great minds and intellectuals of that
period, like Alexander Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and Alexander Botticelli. They
made Renaissance Italy comparable to Athens of the 5th century BC.
As a modern political thinker, he made individual or human nature as the basis of his
political philosophy. He kept the state over and above everything else. He advised the
rulers to encourage and exaggerate public insecurity even by raising spectre of external
danger to the community. Though he condemned religion and tried to sub-ordinate
church to state yet he could not forget the role which church had played in the last two
centuries. He advised ruler to take advantage of the religious beliefs and to exploit religious
sentiments for promoting national interests.
• His Understanding of Human Nature and Motives

Machiavelli has long been required reading for everyone interested in politics and power.
In the Prince, Machiavelli presents a unique view on governing a state. He believes that the
Prince should be the only authority that should determine every aspect of the state and put
in effect a policy which would serve his best interests. These interests are gaining,
maintaining and expanding his political power.
Machiavelli believed that human beings are ungrateful and selfish. Man is self-centred and
thinks about his own interests. They are interested to acquire more and are not interested
to leave what has been acquired. They are therefore, always struggling with each other,
thereby creating conditions of anarchy.

Secondly men are timid and creatures of his habits. He wants to follow only well-
established customs so that he is not opposed by the society.

Furthermore he prompted out that the human mind tended to glorify the past, decry the
present and hope for better future. Like Aristotle, Machiavelli characterised the individual
as a political animal. He referred to the individuals love for power, reputation, keenness to
establish superiority over others and to control others.

MONTESQUIEU

MONTESQUIEU (18 JANUARY 1689 – 10 FEBRUARY 1755), WAS COMMONLY KNOWN

AS MONTESQUIEU. HE WAS A FRENCH POLITICAL THINKER WHO LIVED DURING
THE AGE OF ENLIGHTENMENT. HE IS FAMOUS FOR HIS THEORY OF THE
SEPARATION OF POWERS IN GOVERNMENT. MANY CONSTITUTIONS ALL OVER
THE WORLD USE IT. HE HELPED MAKE THE TERMS "FEUDALISM" AND
"BYZANTINE EMPIRE" POPULAR.

POLITICAL VIEWS
BEFORE MONTESQUIEU, THE STANDARD FEUDAL SYSTEM WAS CALLED "THE
THREE ESTATES":

THE ENTIRE CLERGY

THE ARISTOCRACY (THE MONARCH WAS OUTSIDE THE SYSTEM OF "ESTATES")
THE "THIRD ESTATE": THE COMMONERS
MONTESQUIEU'S RADICAL WORK DIVIDED FRENCH PEOPLE INTO THREE
CLASSES, OR GROUPS: THREE CLASSES (OR TRIAS POLITICA, A TERM HE COINED):

THE MONARCHY
THE ARISTOCRACY
THE COMMONS
THESE SHOULD BE BALANCED, SO THAT NO ONE POWER WOULD BE ABLE TO
OVERCOME THE OTHER TWO, EITHER SINGLY OR IN COMBINATION. THIS WAS A
RADICAL IDEA BECAUSE IT ELIMINATED THE THREE ESTATES STRUCTURE.
MONTESQUIEU'S IDEAS ARE IMPORTANT BECAUSE THEY ENDED THE
FEUDALISTIC STRUCTURE. THEY ALSO HELPED INSPIRE THE CONSTITUTION OF
MANY COUNTRIES, INCLUDING THE UNITED STATES.

SOME OF MONTESQUIEU'S IDEAS ARE STILL CONTROVERSIAL. HE BELIEVED

THAT WOMEN COULD BE LEADERS IN GOVERNMENT. BUT HE THOUGHT WOMEN
COULD NOT LEAD A FAMILY. HE SUPPORTED A HEREDITARY ARISTOCRACY.

MONTESQUIEU DESCRIBES AN UNUSUAL IDEA IN HIS ESSAYS THE SPIRIT OF THE

LAWS AND PERSIAN LETTERS. THIS IDEA IS THE CLIMATE THEORY. IT SAYS THAT
CLIMATE, THE WEATHER OF A PLACE, INFLUENCES THE NATURE OF MAN AND HIS
SOCIETY. MONTESQUIEU THOUGHT THAT SOME CLIMATES WERE BETTER THAN
OTHERS. HE BELIEVED THE MILD CLIMATE OF FRANCE IS THE BEST. HE
BELIEVED PEOPLE FROM HOT COUNTRIES ARE "TOO HOT-TEMPERED". PEOPLE IN
COLD, NORTHERN COUNTRIES ARE "ICY" OR "STIFF." THE CLIMATE IN MIDDLE
EUROPE THEREFORE BREEDS THE BEST PEOPLE.

Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau

JOHN STUART MILL (1806 – 1873)

JOHN STUART MILL (20 MAY 1806 – 8 MAY 1873), USUALLY CITED AS J. S. MILL,
WAS A BRITISH PHILOSOPHER, POLITICAL ECONOMIST, AND CIVIL SERVANT. ONE
OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL THINKERS IN THE HISTORY OF LIBERALISM, HE
CONTRIBUTED WIDELY TO SOCIAL THEORY, POLITICAL THEORY, AND POLITICAL
ECONOMY. DUBBED "THE MOST INFLUENTIAL ENGLISH-SPEAKING PHILOSOPHER
OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY", MILL'S CONCEPTION OF LIBERTY JUSTIFIED THE
FREEDOM OF THE INDIVIDUAL IN OPPOSITION TO UNLIMITED STATE AND SOCIAL
CONTROL.

MILL WAS A PROPONENT OF UTILITARIANISM, AN ETHICAL THEORY DEVELOPED

BY HIS PREDECESSOR JEREMY BENTHAM.

J. S. Mill was the staunchest supporter of the freedom of the individual and didn’t want any
restriction on the same. He espoused equal liberty for both the sexes-males and females.

He in collaboration with his wife Harriet Taylor wrote The Subjection of Women in 1869, a
work which was far ahead of its time in its application of the principle of liberty to the
position of women. He regarded improvement in the position of women as a concern not
restricted to women alone, but of entire humanity. In The Subjection of Women, Mill
strongly argued for the equal status of women in three key areas: Right to vote, Equal
opportunities in education and employment.

He cited the examples of Joan of Arc, Elizabeth and Margaret of Austria to highlight the
political acumen of the women. Mill hoped that political rights would enable the women
to voice their view into the law making process.

for him the concept of state was incomplete without the representation of women, for him
the Strengthening the democratic citizenship depends on women position in the
state

Karl Marx (5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist,
historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist and socialist revolutionary.

Marx is popularly regarded as the father of modern socialism, which has also been
called Marxism. He is best known for his early work The Communist Manifesto.
This work called for the overthrow of the social system of capitalism and the
creation of a new, free, and equal society.

Marx studied law and philosophy at university. He married Jenny von Westphalen in 1843.
Due to his political publications, Marx became stateless and lived in exile with his wife and
children in London for decades, where he continued to develop his thought in
collaboration with German thinker Friedrich Engels and publish his writings, researching
in the reading room of the British Museum.

His best-known titles are the 1848 pamphlet, The Communist Manifesto, and the
three-volume Das Kapital. His political and philosophical thought had enormous
influence on future intellectual, economic and political history and his name has been
used as an adjective, a noun and a school of social theory.

Marx's theories about society, economics and politics – collectively understood as

Marxism – hold that human societies develop through class struggle. In capitalism, this
manifests itself in the conflict between the ruling classes (known as the bourgeoisie) that
control the means of production and the working classes (known as the proletariat). the
proletariat sell their labour power in return for wages.

Karl Marx predicted that, like previous economic systems, capitalism produced internal
tensions which would lead to its self-destruction and replacement by a new system:
socialism. Marx actively argued that the working class should carry out organised
revolutionary action to topple capitalism.

Marx's ideas have had a profound impact on world politics and intellectual thought.

Marx has been described as one of the most influential figures in human history, and his
work has been both highly praised and criticised. Many intellectuals, labour unions, artists
and political parties worldwide have been influenced by Marx's work, with many
modifying or adapting his ideas. Marx is typically cited as one of the principal architects of
modern social science.

Ideas and influence

Marx’s political ideas had far-reaching influence. In The Communist Manifesto, Marx
argued that the workers of the world would lead a revolution that would overthrow the
capitalist order. Following this revolution, a new classless Communist society would
appear. During the 20th century, many governments and self-declared Communist regimes
claimed to base their rule on these early writings of Marx. The first and most famous of
these regimes existed in the Soviet Union.