POLITICAL THOUGHT BA [Political Science] Second Semester [ENGLISH EDITION] Directorate of Distance Education TRIPURA UNIVERSITY Reviewer Dr Nivedita Giri Assistant Professor, Jesus & Mary College, University of Delhi Authors Dr Biswaranjan Mohanty, Units: (2.3.5, 2.4.1-2.4.5, 3.3.1, 4.2-4.4) © Dr Biswaranjan Mohanty, 2016 Quaisar Alam, Units: (1.2-1.2.3, 1.2.6, 1.3-1.3.1, 1.3.3, 1.3.5, 1.4.1-1.4.4) © Quaisar Alam, 2016 Dr Madhusmita Giri, Units: (2.2-2.3.1, 2.3.3-2.3.4) © Dr Madhusmita Giri, 2016 Vikas® Publishing House, Units: (1.0-1.1, 1.2.4-1.2.5, 1.3.2, 1.3.4, 1.3.6, 1.4, 1.5-1.9, 2.0-2.1, 2.3.2, 2.4, 2.5-2.9, 3.0-3.3, 3.3.2, 3.4-3.9, 4.0-4.1, 4.5-4.10) © Reserved, 2016 Books are developed, printed and published on behalf of Directorate of Distance Education, Tripura University by Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd. All rights reserved. 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E-28, Sector-8, Noida - 201301 (UP) Phone: 0120-4078900 • Fax: 0120-4078999 Regd. Office: 7361, Ravindra Mansion, Ram Nagar, New Delhi – 110 055 • Website: www.vikaspublishing.com • Email: [email protected] SYLLABI-BOOK MAPPING TABLE Political Thought Syllabi Mapping in Book Unit - I Plato: Concept of Justice, Education, Communism and Ideal Unit 1: Western Classical Political State Aristotle: State, Slavery, Revolution, Classification of Thinkers (Pages 3-40) Government Machiavelli: Modern Absolutism, Prince, Secularism Unit - II Bentham: Jurisprudence, Principles of Morals, Legislation Unit 2: Modern Political Thinkers J. S. Mill: On Liberty, Essays on Government, Revision of (Pages 41-84) Utilitarianism Lenis: State, Dictatorship of Party, Contribution to Marxism Neo Marxism, Scientific Socialism Unit - III Ram Mohan: Social Reform, Liberalism Unit 3: Indian Social Thought Bankimchandra: Nationalism, Equality (Pages 85-103) Vivekananda: Nationalism, Socialism Unit - IV Gandhi: Satyagraha, State Unit 4: Modern Indian Political M. N. Roy: New Humanism, Organised Democracy Thought (Pages 105-159) B. R. Ambedkar: Social Justice, Political Ideas Nehru: Model of Development, Freedom Movement CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 1 UNIT 1 WESTERN CLASSICAL POLITICAL THINKERS 3-40 1.0 Introduction 1.1 Unit Objectives 1.2 Plato 1.2.1 Plato’s Political Theory 1.2.2 Concept of Justice in an Ideal State 1.2.3 Plato’s Communism 1.2.4 Theory of Education 1.2.5 Education in The Laws 1.2.6 Relevance of Plato in Contemporary Discourse 1.3 Aristotle 1.3.1 Aristotle’s Idea of Political Theory and State 1.3.2 Ideal State 1.3.3 Classification of Governments 1.3.4 Slavery 1.3.5 Theory of Citizenship 1.3.6 Revolution 1.4 Machiavelli 1.4.1 Modern Absolutism: Machiavelli’s Theory of Political Power 1.4.2 Prince 1.4.3 Evaluation of Machiavelli’s Political Thought 1.4.4 Secularism 1.5 Summary 1.6 Key Terms 1.7 Answers to ‘Check Your Progress’ 1.8 Questions and Exercises 1.9 Further Reading UNIT 2 MODERN POLITICAL THINKERS 41-84 2.0 Introduction 2.1 Unit Objectives 2.2 Bentham 2.2.1 Utilitarian Principles 2.2.2 Legislation and Morality 2.2.3 Political Philosophy 2.2.4 Views on Jurisprudence and Punishment 2.2.5 Panopticon 2.3 J. S. Mill 2.3.1 On Liberty 2.3.2 Simple Principle of Liberty 2.3.3 State and Liberty: Essays on Government 2.3.4 Equal Rights for Women 2.3.5 Revision of Utilitarianism 2.4 Vladimir Lenin 2.4.1 State and Dictatorship of Party 2.4.2 Theory of Revolution 2.4.3 Neo Marxism: Revolution in Non-industrial Countries 2.4.4 Lenin’s Contribution to Neo-Marxism 2.4.5 Scientific Socialism 2.5 Summary 2.6 Key Terms 2.7 Answers to ‘Check Your Progress’ 2.8 Question and Answers 2.9 Further Reading UNIT 3 INDIAN SOCIAL THOUGHT 85-103 3.0 Introduction 3.1 Unit Objectives 3.2 Rammohan Roy: Social Reform 3.2.1 Liberalism 3.2.2 Concept of Freedom 3.2.3 Freedom of Press 3.2.4 Separation of Powers 3.2.5 Colonial Rule 3.2.6 Ideal of Internationalism 3.3 Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay 3.3.1 Nationalism 3.3.2 Equality 3.4 Vivekananda 3.4.1 Nationalism 3.4.2 Socialism 3.5 Summary 3.6 Key Terms 3.7 Answers to ‘Check Your Progress’ 3.8 Questions and Exercises 3.9 Further Reading UNIT 4 MODERN INDIAN POLITICAL THOUGHT 105-159 4.0 Introduction 4.1 Unit Objectives 4.2 Gandhi: Preacher of Non-violence, Satyagraha 4.2.1 Satyagraha 4.2.2 Gandhi’s Concept of the Individual and the State 4.3 M. N. Roy: A Revolutionary Nationalist 4.3.1 Roy’s Marxist Beliefs 4.3.2 New or Radical Humanism 4.3.3 Concept of Organised Democracy 4.3.4 Roy and Gandhi 4.3.5 Roy’s Contribution to Indian Political Thought 4.4 B. R. Ambedkar: A Social Revolutionary 4.4.1 A Revolutionary Seeking Social Justice 4.4.2 Organisation of the Socially Oppressed Classes 4.4.3 Ambedkar and the Poona Pact 4.4.4 Political Ideas of Ambedkar 4.4.5 Ambedkar’s Ideas on Social and Economic Democracy 4.4.6 Economic Planning 4.5 Jawaharlal Nehru 4.5.1 Freedom Movement 4.5.2 Nehruvian Model of Development 4.5.3 Institution Building and Infrastructure Development 4.5.4 Critique of Nehruvian Model 4.6 Summary 4.7 Key Terms 4.8 Answers to ‘Check Your Progress’ 4.9 Questions and Exercises 4.10 Further Reading Introduction INTRODUCTION NOTES Every single individual, at one point or another, in his or her life, has thought about the kind of society they would like to live in. Those who become seriously interested in the field have looked towards the theories of political philosophers through the ages to give coherence to their own ideas on society. Thus, it would not be an exaggeration to state that from Aristotle to Marx, the thoughts of great political thinkers on subjects as varied as liberty, justice, state, law and property have provided the foundation for the shaping and the development of human society. The political environment around the world has been moulded by the thinking and visions of famous thinkers like, Plato, Aristotle and Karl Marx. All their theories were based on philosophies, which covered subjects like, freedom, law, justice, rights, authority and property. These theories have set a base for triggering revolutions and global changes. The majority of political ideologies of the world owe their guidance to these thinkers. Every person, who is studying political science, has to have a clear understanding of the political theories of thinkers like Bentham, J. S. Mill, and Gandhi. For students in India, it is important to understand the ideas and thoughts of early socialists and reformers such as Rammohan Roy and Vivekananda and also the likes of M. N. Roy and B. R Ambedkar. This understanding is critical for analysing any situation in the current scenario of global politics. The book Political Thought has been designed keeping in mind the self- instruction mode (SIM) format and follows a simple pattern, wherein each unit of the book begins with Introduction followed by Unit Objectives to the topic. The content is then presented in a simple and easy-to-understand manner, and is interspersed with Check Your Progress questions to test the student’s understanding of the topic. A list of Questions and Exercises is also provided at the end of each unit, and includes short-answer as well as long-answer questions. The Summary and Key Terms are a useful tools for effectual recapitulation of the text by the students. Self-Instructional Material 1 Western Classical Political UNIT 1 WESTERN CLASSICAL Thinkers POLITICAL THINKERS NOTES Structure 1.0 Introduction 1.1 Unit Objectives 1.2 Plato 1.2.1 Plato’s Political Theory 1.2.2 Concept of Justice in an Ideal State 1.2.3 Plato’s Communism 1.2.4 Theory of Education 1.2.5 Education in The Laws 1.2.6 Relevance of Plato in Contemporary Discourse 1.3 Aristotle 1.3.1 Aristotle’s Idea of Political Theory and State 1.3.2 Ideal State 1.3.3 Classification of Governments 1.3.4 Slavery 1.3.5 Theory of Citizenship 1.3.6 Revolution 1.4 Machiavelli 1.4.1 Modern Absolutism: Machiavelli’s Theory of Political Power 1.4.2 Prince 1.4.3 Evaluation of Machiavelli’s Political Thought 1.4.4 Secularism 1.5 Summary 1.6 Key Terms 1.7 Answers to ‘Check Your Progress’ 1.8 Questions and Exercises 1.9 Further Reading 1.0 INTRODUCTION Western political thought concentrates principally on the history of the West and different issues confronting it.