Raz's Theory of Authority

Paper Summary:

The paper explains Joseph Raz's theory of authority where he gives his account of the service conception of authority, which states that political authority should be exercised in the service of those it purports to govern. The paper asserts that Joseph Raz's account of political authority is inadequate, since he offers only minimal support for his justification of political authority as the service conception.

From the Paper:

"A legitimate political authority, involves a right to rule. A political party has a right to rule if among other things, they have power to change a subject situations by imposing obligations to compel with the regimes directives. Joesph Raz theorized that legitimate political authority requires the possession of normative powers as outlined above which is also known as de facto authorities (Raz,1985: 6). In Joseph Raz's theory of authority he gives his account of the service conception of authority which states that political authority should be exercised in the service of those it purports to govern. Raz offers the dependence thesis, the normal justification thesis, and the preemptive thesis to establish the legitimacy of political authority (Raz,1985: 18). Joseph Raz's account of political authority is an inadequate account of political authority though Raz rightly argues, that a political regime can only have law and a legal system if it is a de facto authority (regime possess extensive normative power to govern those subject to the regime). However, Raz fails to conditionally support through his justification of political authority as his service conception and all other problems regarding authority subsumed under it are based on minimal evidence (Raz,1985: 17)."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Raz, Joseph, "Authority and Justification", Philosophy and Public Affairs, Vol.14, No. 1 Princeton Review Press."(Winter, 1985). pp.3-29. http://www.jstor.org/stable/2265235. 17/10/2008.

More papers on Raz's Theory of Authority:

• Analytical Essay # 36659 : "Rejection of Authority"
• Analytical Essay # 126792 : "The Theory of Planned Behavior"
• Essay # 72507 : "The Genetic Control Theory of Aging"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: