POLITICAL SCIENCE Chapter Notes - Chapter GOVERNMENTAL STRUCTURES AND FUNCTIONS: Jean Bodin, Montesquieu, Unicameralism

• School: University of Calicut
• Department: Humanities
• Course: POLITICAL SCIENCE

Document Summary

The organization of the government may be viewed either territorially or functionally. Territorially we have governments at various levels - central, regional and local. Functionally, the governments have been traditionally divided into three branches - the legislative (rule making), the executive (rule application), and the judicial (rule adjudication) organs (structures) of government. Modern political science" these are known as the output agencies of the political system. The theory of separation of powers coupled with that of the theory of checks and balances, belongs to this aspect of the government functions. The theory of separation of powers often traced back to aristotle, who mentions three functions of government, viz. , deliberative, magisterial and judicial. In the sixteenth century, jean bodin, pointed out the danger of allowing the monarch to administer justice. He suggested that judicial functions should be entrusted to independent magistrates. John locke refers to the separation of powers into legislative, executive and federative.