Introduction to Political Ideas - Essay Example

Introduction to political ideas Contents Introduction 3 Discussions 4 ity of 4 Freedom of individual 5 Differences 7 Conclusion 10 References 12 Introduction Authority and freedom has strong connection among each other. People having political, social and economic power try to posses their authority on the people who are not strong enough as them. These people play a vital role in controlling the authority of state. Freedom of people is often suppressed by the authority of strong people. By reducing the freedom of people the powerful people within the state try to enhance their authority. For this reason people living in the state face many problems regarding their freedom issues. The major political thinkers developed different ways for creating boundaries between authority of state and freedom of individual. The boundaries benefited the political system and the citizens of a state in various ways. Various theories were developed by the political thinkers for developing appropriate ways in differentiating freedom of individual with authority of state. In the concept of political sociology, freedom and authority play an important role. Both of these concepts are essential in understanding the political structure and condition of the state. This study will highlight the different ways through which the political thinkers stated different things regarding these two concepts. Freedom and authority has a wide interpretation in political theory. Economic, political, legal freedom and authority is closely associated with the growth and freedom of the state. From a very ancient time the relation between authority and freedom is being discussed by the philosophers and political thinkers. Authority creates obstruction to freedom and authority is eroded by freedom. These two concepts are mutually connected with each other. The meaning of authority of state and freedom of individual will be focused in this essay. Discussions Authority of state The rules and regulation of the state is formed by its authority. The political and powerful persons of a state play a significant role in developing the various rules and regulations for making their position strong. With the help of their authority the political and powerful persons limit the freedom of individual people. The social orders and norms have a major contribution in developing authority of state. According to the view of the political thinker Locke, people have the right to revolt against the society or authority if their natural rights and freedom are restricted by the authority. Authority is necessary for governing the state properly with the help of various rules and regulations. The state acts as an ultimate authority of the society. Various problems of the state are solved by its authority. The authority of state can use army, police and different other forces for governing the state properly. Based on different situations relevant actions are taken by the legislative body of the state for protecting the society from different problems. The authority of the state is accepted by the citizen if it protects their rights. The political thinker Locke’s highlighted the theory of Social contract which focuses on the obligation of citizens and the government. The rights of the citizens are protected by the government by developing and implementing different laws. The government of many states require consent from the citizens before developing any strong rules. If the authority of state does not maintain the rules and regulations of the state then the people refuse to accept the authority of the government and tend to form a new government. The philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau also supported the social contract theory (Tillett, 2004). With the help of this theory this philosopher emphasised on the strong connection between authority of state and freedom of people. When a state uses its authority or power to the extreme extent then the freedom of people gets limited. Strong control of the government leads to the misuse of its power for taking different advantages. This causes the loss of individual freedom. Totalitarianism is a type or example of extreme state authority. The government acts as a dictator who wants total obedience from the people. Individual rights and freedom are not accepted in totalitarianism. The authority of state regulates the social matters, policies and practices of the countries. Military forces are used by the authority for controlling the freedom of people. Different types of freedom are not accepted by the dictator government. Anarchism is also a form of authority of state. In this type of authority the government does not exert strong control over the citizens. Different types of freedom are provided by the government to the people (Riwar & Schmidt, 2009). The authority of the state facilitates the people in developing good society. When all the citizens are treated fairly by the government then they feel satisfied with the government and accept its authority. The political thinkers and the philosophers have given their view regarding the needs of different communities which the authority requires to consider for making it accepted to the people. Freedom of individual Freedom cannot be explained without authority. Existence of freedom is dependent on the authority. Every individual needs some kinds of freedom for living their lives freely. The authority of the state provides to freedom to the people. The government gives liberty to the people for performing different functions and actions. But the government forms different rules and regulations for controlling the extent of individual freedom. On the basis of different types of freedom social structure of the state is maintained efficiently. Rules and regulations are designed by the government in such a way which ensure the freedom of the people. In the modern political environment, many types of freedom are provided to the people. Citizens are considered as the most vital things of the state. So the authority of the state tries to satisfy citizens for assuring its position in the state. Freedom of individual consists of different types of things. This freedom varies according to the power and influence of the authority. The authority of many states provides huge amount of freedom to the people but in some states the authority puts strong control on the people and limits their freedom. In many instance it has been observed that if the authority does not provide necessary freedom to individuals then they revolt against the authority and do not accept the power of the authority. Freedom of individual highlights the power of people in the society. With the help of different types of freedom people knows about their rights in the state. Various rights and freedom are important for the people for performing activities which help in the growth and development of the state. With the help of freedom people takes part in different affairs of the state which facilitates the authority in taking important decisions (Tillett, 2004). Power of common people is expressed by their freedom. But in many cases the freedom of individual in a society is limited by the interference of the authority. This is mainly done by the government for controlling the negative impacts of the individual freedom in the society. Authority of the state sometimes wants to dominate the power of the people by reducing the freedom of the citizen. The political thinkers believe that freedom of the individual must be equal for all the people. The authority should not discriminate the freedom of individual people for taking any advantage (Damrosch, 2005). The theory of social contract also focuses on the freedom of people. Freedoms of expression, feelings, thought, etc are the main components of this theory. , Authoritarianism government possesses a strong control on the freedom of individual. Individual rights and freedoms are restricted by the government. But this type of government cannot contribute much in the growth and development of the people. The people are afraid of this type authority. They are forced to accept the power of authority for the existence of strong military rule and power (Sreenivasan, 2000). But the absence of individual freedom creates different types of problems among the citizens which compel them to revolt against the government. Differences State can be defined as a political institution whose main function or responsibility is to regulate the society or state. The authority of state empowers legislative authority to the state for enforcing law. The sovereignty of state emerged during the sixteenth and the seventeenth century. The main differences that exist between the authority of the state and the freedom of the individual are authority of state experiences statutory power in controlling the state. The state holds the power of taking important decision regarding controlling the state whereas the freedom of the individual can be defined as the power that is vested on the public or the individual in making significant decisions. The political thinkers such as Hegel opined that the State is considered as the means through which the individual freedom enjoys the objectivity. The individual who desires to act in this world is required to perform the task or duty by himself. Individual freedom can be experienced only in compliance with the state. The coercive action of the individuals is not justified since it is based on illegitimate power, whereas the coercive action of authority of the state can be justified as it is based on legitimate power. In the republican form of government the difference between the two can be explained as in case of the authority of the state, the state retains all the powers and right for controlling the state except the federal power, which is strictly mentioned in the theory. But the individual as compared to the government has no right or power at all except those rights or powers that is provided to the individuals from the superior or the senior authority. The political thinker Mohammed Khalid explained the differences between the two types of political views in relation to the democratic society, he emphasized that in democratic society the individuals are provided freedom which entitles the individual to enjoy and experience the freedom for shaping or building their own careers and conducting their own affairs (Hobbes, 2012). With the increase in globalization the responsibility and the role of the state authority is decreasing, since with the emergence of the Disney, Mc Donald’s and Coca cola Corporation it is observed that the distribution of goods and services are vested on the individuals. The military force is becoming out of place and powerless in many cases. But the political thinkers also focused on the fact that with the emergence and impact of globalization on the society, the importance or the role of the state authority cannot be ignored completely since it plays a major role in controlling the state, it forms the main basis of governance and it occupies the central control over the governance of the state. The impact of globalization on the state challenged the working and the identity on the functioning of the state. The loss of control of the state authority and the movement of the capital and the products raised concern in controlling the state over the population, government and authority. The state of authority is criticized since it adopts or implements stringent rules and regulations, but the adverse affect of the individual freedom on the society cannot be ignored or neglected. It created various problems related to safeguarding of the human rights. It resulted in the increase in the unemployment opportunities, problem regarding cultural identity and providing democratic rights. Mill as apolitical thinker is against the theory or the principles of state authority, he supported the view or the approach of the individual freedom, and he believed that individuals are required to provide freedom in making necessary decisions. The society should be open to adopt the changes and implement the suggestions of the individuals. The freedom of individuals can be experienced more in the capitalist free economy of the world. The freedom provided to the individuals not only increases their happiness but it is considered as an important element for substantial living. The right or the authority exercised by the individual serves the need and the interest of the society in the broader perspective. The state authority explains the power or statutory right exercised by the state in controlling and maintaining the state in accordance with the formulated rules and regulations of the state, whereas the freedom of the individual is engaged in providing freedom to the individuals in the decision making process of the society or the nation. Different political thinkers presented different views and opinion regarding the state authority and the individual freedom. The political thinkers emphasized on establishing relationship between the two approaches or views. It is observed that there are few political thinkers who supported the state authority and vice –versa. Mill explained in his theory that there is a need to establish the relationship between the state authority and the freedom of the individuals. The authority of the state should be engaged with the purpose of providing protection to the citizens and also providing personal freedom. Independence is considered as absolute and individual sovereignty is regarded as the highest (Goulding, 2007). Authority is a kind of invasion associated to freedom and freedom is considered as inevitable erosion to authority. There is a difference between freedom and authority, but on the other hand they are sometimes compatible or related to each other. The relationship between this two approach results in the history of liberalism. Freedom is not related to eliminating the authority at the beginning and authority should not be considered as an end of the freedom. The concept of authority is not subjected to impose restrictions on exercising freedom. But the freedom provided to the individuals in the society is expected to be utilized adequately for the right and the correct purpose. Both this concept are closely associated or related to each other and for ideal functioning of the society both the state and the individuals should perform the allocated duties and responsibilities effectively and efficiently. The concept of liberalism became more prominent in the recent years (Schmitt, 2008). The development of the concept of authority of the state with the removal of restriction on freedom is considered as the erosion or the extinction of authority. The main controversy in exercising the state authority is that it adopts rigid and stringent rules and regulations in practice and it rejects the opinion or the suggestions provided by the individuals. It is due to the limitations or the restrictions imposed by the state of authority, the political thinkers considered the individual freedom in the society. The individual freedom is also not free from criticism it is required to perform its role and responsibility not for his personal interest but for the interest of the society. The state actually comprises of freedom. But the concrete freedom mainly includes the interest of the individuals in providing benefit or advantages to other individuals or the society. The problem associated with it is the extent of power or authority exercised by the state. The state should provide more freedom to the individuals in exercising the power in interest of the nation or the society. From the above views and opinions of the political thinkers it can be analyzed that both this approaches plays a significant role in functioning of the society or the nation. Both this approaches has limitations in its applications in the society. Therefore it is the responsibility of the state to perform its responsibility adequately by providing freedom to the individuals. Conclusion This essay highlighted the concepts of freedom of individual and authority of state in a detailed way. Various political thinkers have produced their views regarding these two concepts which influence the social structure of the state. State is perceived as a political institution. Authority plays an important role in determining the freedom of individual. The essay highlighted various differenced between authority of state and freedom of individuals according to the views and opinions of different political thinkers. The authority of a state needs to provide freedom to the people for developing effective social rules and regulations. Different types of government exert various types of control on the people. The freedom of people varies as per the rules and regulations of the government. The essay discusses that authority is accepted by the people when government provides necessary freedom to the individuals. Freedom helps to shape the career and life of people. But the control of authority is also important for the state. With the help of strong rules and regulations the government is able to protect the social structure of the state. This essay also stated that globalization creates a strong impact on the authority of state and freedom of individual. References Damrosch, L., 2005, Jean-Jacques Rousseau: Restless Genius. New York: Houghton Mifflin. Goulding, D., 2007. Recapturing Freedom: Issues Relating to the Release of Long-term Prisoners into the Community. Sydney: Hawkins Press. Hobbes, T., 2012. Leviathan. New York: Courier Corporation. Riwar, R. P., & Schmidt, T. L., 2009. Transient dynamics of a molecular quantum dot with a vibrational degree of freedom. Physical Review B, 80(12), pp. 125109. Schmitt, C., 2008. Constitutional theory. United States: Duke University Press. Sreenivasan, G., 2000, What is the General Will?, Philosophical Review. 109(1), pp. 545–81 Tillett, B. B., 2004. Authority control: State of the art and new perspectives. Cataloging & Classification Quarterly, 38(3-4), pp. 23-41. Read More