Politics & Sociology

Chapters 13 & 9

The Political Institution

The nature of the social contract- Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau

Start in the state of nature

Give up some rights to guarantee security and protection of core rights

Political institution- the system of roles and norms that governs the distribution and exercise of power (the ability to control the behavior of others, with or without their consent) in society

Power is exercised by the STATE-the primary political authority

Perspectives Functionalists- analyze the political institution

in terms of the functions of the state, ex. The creation and enforcement of laws, provision of services

Conflict theorists- focus on how the political institution brings about social change, ex. How people compete for power, favor wealthier segments of society

Is power legitimate?

Legitimacy- whether those in power are viewed as having the right to control, govern others

Is power being exercised with the consent of the governed

Illegitimate when it is exercised without the approval of the people or against their will

Authority Max Weber called legitimate power

AUTHORITY

Traditional authority is power based on a long standing customs, often hereditary

Rational-legal authority where formal rules and regulations provide the basis for government, written constitution and set of laws

Charismatic authority- based on personal characteristics of the individual exercising the power, Ghandi, Adolf Hitler, Mao, Castro

Coercion

The opposite of authority

Power that is considered illegitimate by the people being governed

Use of force and/or fear, restrictions on press/speech, use of military to maintain power

Types of government

Democracy- power is exercised through the people, popular sovereignty

Direct democracy- ancient Greece

Representative democracy- US

Constitutional monarchy- GB

Democratic socialism-leaders elected, government owns some factors of production- Norway, Sweden

Democracy conditions

Industrialization- not automatically linked but most democratic societies are democracies

Access to information-democracy requires well informed voters

Limits on power-clear limits placed on scope of powers, often limited by different branches

Shared values- some agreement on basic values or difficult to compromise

Authoritarian systems

Power rests firmly with the state

Absolute monarchy- hereditary, Saudia Arabia

Dictatorship- a single individual

Junta- small group has seized government by force

Totalitarian most extreme- Germany/Hitler, Stalin/Soviets

Why do people accept?

Erich Fromm, Escape From Freedom

People want to escape feelings of isolation and powerlessness, by submitting, people achieve a sense of security

‘authoritarian character’

American political system

Dominated by 2 major political parties

Consists of 3 branches of government

Includes interest groups and PACs which influence government decisions

Has proportional representation, debate over who holds power

Includes public participation, although relatively low turnout

Who rules America? Power-elite model, C. Wright Mills

Political power is exercised by and for the privileged few in society, government, military, businesses draw from small elite percentage of the American population

Pluralist model- the political process is controlled by interest groups that compete with one another for power. Stops concentration of power in hands of too few, but admit to problems of poverty, etc.

Are there social classes?

Dimensions of social stratification:

Wealth-income & property, unequal distribution

Power-ability to control behavior of others

Prestige-respect, honor

Socioeconomic status combines factors like educational level, occupational prestige, residence with economic factor of income

Determining social class

How many classes are there? How determine?

Reputational method- individuals in community asked to rank other community members

Subjective method- individuals are asked to determine their own social rank

Objective method- sociologists define social class by income, education, and occupation

Upper class

About 1% of population

Old money v. new money

Prestigious schools, raised atmosphere of wealth

Middle Classes

Upper middle class 14%- college or university, business executives, and professionals

Lower middle class 30%- high school or college, lower level managers, skilled craftsman

Working class 30%- high school, factory and clerical workers, lower level sales

Working Poor & Underclass

Working poor 22%- some high school, laborers, service workers

Underclass 3% some high school, low paying jobs, unemployed, generational welfare recipients

Mobility? Movement between social strata or classes

Horizontal mobility- movement within a stratum

Vertical mobility- between classes

Intergenerational mobility- American Dream

Political institution & popular culture

Two types of political movies: 1. corruption exposed, 2. wouldn’t it be nice if things were more like…

Examine institutions and the political process

Overtly political or are all movies political?

Birth of a Nation

Idealism on trial Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

All the King’s Men

Campaigns Evolution in tactics: media, transportation,

internet

Campaigns

How view President? Fictional

Historic

Conspiracies & Satires