POLI 201 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1-2: Traditional Authority, Charismatic Authority, Bertrand De Jouvenel
31 Jan 2017
School
Department
Course
Professor
Document Summary
Politics is derived from the greek word polis, or city-state. A more contemporary definition describes politics as the art or science of running. In ancient greek times, a polis described a self-governing city governmental or state affairs. The concept of politics has a similar definition to government. Essentially, the difference is that government is a machine and politics determines who controls the machine. The government is an entity and politics is the transference of power. Human politics is complex, and as a result, many political scientists have different opinions on what purpose it serves. According to french writer, bertrand de jouvenel, politics is the act of gathering and maintaining support for projects. Other thinkers view politics essentially as conflict. The coalition, defined in the text as the joining of forces by two or more parties during a conflict of interest with other parties", is an essential component of politics.
