Abstract The paper discusses William Godwin's major work, "An Enquiry Concerning Political Justice", which is an early elucidation of the political theory of anarchism. The paper defines anarchism and then compares this work to Marx's "Capital" and "The Communist Manifesto". The paper explores why William Godwin's work has had less public exposure and popularity than either of Marx's works.
From the Paper "While Karl Marx has become a famous thinker and philosopher through the wide dissemination of his two major works, Capital and The Communist Manifesto, a much lesser known figure has also contributed substantially to the perennial dialogue of radical political philosophies, and this man and his work is worthy of deeper analysis. This writer is William Godwin (1756-1836), who was nearly a contemporary of Marx and in his own way equally radical, yet significantly divergent in his thought. Godwin may be best known for having married the writer Mary Wollstonecraft, a groundbreaking feminist thinker in her own day, and for being the father of Mary Shelley of Frankenstein fame. Godwin's major work, An Enquiry Concerning Political Justice (1793) is an early elucidation of the political theory of anarchism, and is worth analyzing in terms of the similarities it shares with Marx's communism (Landry, para 16)."
Abstract In this article, the writer notes that Hedley Bull wrote 'The Anarchical Society: A Study of Order in World Politics' thirty years ago; that was nearly twenty-five years before the September 11, 2001 attacks in the U.S. brought down the World Trade Center and changed the political climate worldwide. The writer discusses that nevertheless, what he wrote in this book in 1977 - and in other books and articles - is considered highly germane and pertinent to today's world order. The writer points out that scholars who have written about Bull's work have provided a variety of approaches to the value and tone of Bull's offering. This paper reviews and summarizes Bull's book, and provides insights from scholars who always seem to have heady comments and analysis when it comes to commenting on Bull's research and narrative.
From the Paper "Bull is the kind of intellect and author who likes to break subjects down into categories; and albeit not all of his categories are neat little compartments, he does try to bring his reader to a point of understanding through a king of grouping and common sense explanations. On page 16 he brings his first chapter to a close - after discussing what he means by states, society of states and system of states - by setting out the three goals that societies are seeking to meet (or should be seeking to obtain) and sustain in this international order he describes. This is always instructive to the reader, as being able to anticipate what the author is tackling alerts a head's up consciousness."
Tags: sovereignty, states, independence, international, system
Abstract This paper provides an introduction of the ideology of anarchism, where the government is typically perceived as evil as well as wholly unnecessary. It includes a background to the development of the theory and its main principles and assumptions. It also looks at a number of key examples throughout history such as Barcelona during the Spanish Civil war and the Paris Commune as well as the current standing of anarchism today.
From the Paper "The individual within the Anarchism ideal is thus rational, but must also be to an extent compassionate, as Buchanan proposes in "The Limits of Liberty" individuals should be "dictated by mutual tolerance and respect". So with this understanding of the individual within anarchic society as a basis, a perception of Anarchism can be developed. Anarchy is most often defined as the ?Lack of a centralized authority.? Government is typically perceived as evil as well as wholly unnecessary. This can often have negative connotations, suggesting a lack of social direction and stability. Yet as Herbert Read proposes in his script, "Anarchy and Order", anarchy ?is ambiguous ? for . . . "without ruler", the literal meaning of the root of the word, is not necessarily "without order", the meaning often loosely ascribed to it.?"
Abstract This paper is about Emma Goldman and her various theories, political, societal and moral. It focuses on her forty years spent as an American, especially the years when she was an active member of the anarchist party. It details her involvement in the assassination of Henry Frick, and her accusal in the assassination of President McKinley. It also discusses how her divergent views involving feminism without suffrage, created isolation among politics that she lived with her entire life. Her involvement in the burgeoning sexual revolution and her persona as a figurehead of the atheists and a violent inciter is also expanded upon.
From the Paper "Emma Goldman put very little worth upon the idea of government as a protector of the greater society. Emma Goldman rejected the idea that philosophy could ever be political and she spent her time and energy trying to defeat all types of organized government that she so detested. Her radical and uncompromising views on the nature of government left her without a political forum to embrace, and shaped her reaction to and participation in American anarchism? "
Abstract This paper examines how in 1959, Kenneth Waltz introduced his conception of three images of international relations (IR), which he saw as the possible roots of wars, in his book titled "Man, the State and War". The three images are he evil human nature (first), the state or the immediate social context of human (second) and the state system (third). It looks at how another account of IR was later presented by Marxism-inspired Immanuel Wallerstein who asserts that it is the modern world system, which is capitalistic in nature, that shapes the form of IR. It analyzes how realism has been a very prominent approach in the study of international relations and how it is Marxism, so often associated with communism, that poses great challenge to it. It shows how realism conceives the world to be anarchic in which one should strive for survival on one's own strength and how Wallerstein Marxism on the other hand view the world in a rather hierarchic world system.
From the Paper "Another critic to Neo-Realist approach questions the very concept of anarchy itself. Wendt argues that anarchy is not an objective reality but a social construct. He maintains that the anarchy does not necessary entail the system of self-help. He argues that self-help is an institution that reflects the process of identity and interests formation. The formation of identity, and interests, can only take place in a social context. In that context, the result will depend on the interaction which can vary greatly. Therefore, self-help is arguably only one of possible outcomes. By arguing this, he is saying that anarchy is not a necessary structure of international relations, and that the structure stand in a mutually-constitutive relations with agents. Changes of the structure is not impossible."
Abstract The paper discusses and analyzes various perspectives on legal order. The paper examines different concepts, including Positivism, Marxism, Natural Law, Anarchism, Legal Realism, Feminism, and Critical Legalism. The paper analyzes the role that these theories played in Canadian lawmaking, determining that Positivism had the most influence on contemporary Canadian lawmakers.
From the Paper "What is the purpose of law and why do we need it? Would society completely crumble into a chaotic mess if law did not exist? Well, from what I understand thus far, and from what I have seen on TV lately, law is important to maintaining order in society. Without law and order, anarchy would rule our lives. This sentiment was proven recently in the wake of hurricane Katrina. The devastation and human suffering is a result from lack of government organization."
Abstract This paper examines how the roots of many of the beliefs, which fostered Emma Goldman's adoption of anarchism and desire to help the working class, were the teachings of her Jewish parents. It looks at how not only she opposed government, but how she believed that all forms of organizations, including that of religions, were frosted with a need to control individuals and was, therefore, detrimental to their freedom and rights to have an abundant life.
From the Paper "In 1886, when Goldman immigrated to America, she was a young woman of 16 or 17. The following year, in 1887, she learned of the Chicago Haymarket massacre and trial. This knowledge affected her in a way that ignited the anarchic course her life then took. Not until she heard the history of the massacre and the trial from the lips of another young woman, Johanna Greie, was her passions aroused to such a degree as to invoke her into action. Goldman first heard Grie at a meeting of German Socialists in Rochester. Grier spoke to the group about the events that led up to the Haymarket incident--how it was a peaceful meeting of organized workers until the police attacked the workers. "
Tags: Kaunas, Kovno, Lithuania, corset, factory, women's, rights
Abstract In this article, the writer notes that in the late nineteenth century, the movement known as Neo-Impressionism was influential in French art circles. The writer points out that one of its most prominent figures was the pointillist, Georges Seurat and that in 1884, as he was developing the pointillist technique for which he is largely remembered, Seurat met Paul Signac. The writer discusses that although their personalities were different, the two collaborated, with Signac regarded as secondary: talented, but overshadowed by a genius. After adopting pointillism at the inspiration of Seurat, Signac refined his technique from the fluid style which drew inspiration from the subject matter, to a controlled and refined art. In addition, the writer notes that Signac was torn between technical craft and the political movements of his day. The writer maintains that in recent years, the art community has re-examined its assessment of Signac, finding that he deserves more than the very secondary position to which he has typically been relegated.
From the Paper "While Signac accepted this view, Seurat did not adopt the anarchism that many Impressionists including Signac endorsed. In January 1886, Paul Alexis, a journalist and supporter of the writer Emile Zola, launched a subscription fund for the support of striking miners. Like Signac, Seurat had inherited a comfortable setting, and preferred the amenities that it provided. While he wanted more artistic freedom that the traditional ruling Salon would allow, he was not an anarchist. Seurat did not contribute to Alexis' subscription; Signac and Camille Pissarro did."
"Signac was very much aware of the complex of political currents stirring in France. After 1888, he studied the works of Elisee Reclus, Kropotkin and Jean Grave, and eventually fell into the anarchist camp at least philosophically. Despite this, he regarded himself primarily as a painter rather than a political figure, and expressed himself in paint."
Abstract In this paper, the author relates that he adheres to the ideology of conservative liberalism to the exclusion of socialism, communism, anarchism, fascism or Nazism. The author further relates his belief that this ideology combines the openness and willingness to experiment of liberalism and the caution of classical conservatism. In addition, the author explains that he bases this selection on his view of human nature. The author then concludes that, almost by elimination, he chooses liberalism, thus favoring a government in which the will of the government can be expressed through change.
From the Paper "This concept of liberty helps to shape the corresponding concept of security. The security that the state must offer is twofold. First, it must protect the whole of society from external invasion. We have managed to do this successfully in the repulse of the attack of the Plu-Turns, and we must retain a government of sufficient strength and foresight to repel any future invasion. At the same time, the government must secure the individuals in our society from internal oppression. In our recovery, we will undoubtedly go through periods of severe economic dislocation."
Abstract An examination of Nietzsche's philosophies of music which are still applicable today, and can be seen as the foundation of modern music theory. Nietzsche extensively employed the terms "Dionysian" and "Apollonian" in his conjectures about music. These are terms that are in reference to Plato and his suppositions about simple, ordered and unassuming music (Apollonian) versus irrational, anarchic, chaotic music (Dionysian).
From the Paper "German Philosopher/Musician/Composer, Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) was particularly interested in what he believed to have been the higher quality of life that prevailed in certain periods of history, such as the Italian renaissance, the classic era of the Greeks, and Moorish civilizations in Spain. While most art forms were included under a single umbrella in Nietzsche's philosophies, he wrote extensively about music and musicians as a unique and separate entity."
Tags: apollonian, dionysian, friedrich, history, music, philosophy, theory
Abstract An essay which examines the problem of unjust world politics in relation to Hedley Bull's concept of international society in his book "The Anarchical Society" - in order to answer the question whether international society exists or not. The paper discusses that reality shows that contemporary world politics, in many aspects, is characterized by inequality and a gap between developed and developing countries.
From the Paper "In his book "The Anarchical Society", Hedley Bull mentions three elements of world politics and one of those is the element of cooperation and regulated intercourse among states. According to Bull, this element is the basis of the assumption that within the international system an international society does exist. To prove the existence of international society in modern world politics, Bull notes the existence of institutions that foster the cooperation among states: international law, diplomacy, international organizations, and balance of power. The existence of international society is still being debated in world politics based on the reality that there are many problems related to global international society. One of the problems questioning the presence of international society is the fact that contemporary world politics is so manifestly unjust while, according to Emmerich de Vattel, justice is the basis of all society including the society of states."
Tags: english, idealist, politics, realist, relations, school, society, system, world
This paper discusses Henry David Thoreau's essay "Resistance to Civil Government" and argues that his ideas represent extreme individualism and anarchist ideology.
Abstract This paper examines Thoreau's philosophy of resistance and civil disobedience as the roots of anarchy. The paper shows that within his work, the idea of individualism is paramount. Thoreau's views show that he was deeply skeptical of the government and rejects the view that a person must sacrifice or marginalize her values out of loyalty to her government.
From the Paper "The renowned American author and naturalist Henry David Thoreau is considered to be one of the most influential minds in the American thought and literature. Thoreau had not only great influence on American thought but also on the politics of the world, some of his ideas and concepts that he developed were the most original political doctrines devised by American thinker. We appreciate this more, considering the fact that he was an unconventional thinker. At the heart of Thoreau political philosophy was the concept of individualism, he was a supreme individualist and championed the human spirit against materialism and social conformity. His most famous book, "Walden" 1854 is an eloquent account of his experiment in near solitary living in close harmony with nature, it is also an expression of transcendentalist philosophy. One of Thoreau's most important work, the essay "Resistance to Civil Government" which was later published as "Civil Disobedience 1849, grew out of an overnight stay in prison as a result of his conscientious refusal to pay poll tax that supported the Mexican War which to Thoreau represented an effort to extend slavery. Thoreau's advocacy of civil disobedience as a means for the individual to protest those actions of his government that he considers unjust has had a wide-ranging impact."
The paper describes anarchy as the theory or doctrine that all forms of government are unnecessary, oppressive and undesirable and should be abolished.
Abstract The paper shows how, throughout history, all forms of government are undesirable and explains the two different lines of anarchist thought: "Left-anarchism" and "Anarcho-capitalism". The paper concludes that humanity would benefit from anarchy.
From the Paper "Some of the most misunderstood theories are often more sensible than the majority of common well-known doctrines. Anarchy is an extremely frequently misconstrued political view. Many people believe anarchists favor chaos and disfavor customary organizations like religion. Most of society does not look at anarchism for what it is; a simple solution to the difficulties many countries are experiencing today, and have been experiencing since the beginning of civilization."
Abstract According to Jonathan Barnes, Aristotle's political philosophy runs rife with totalitarian principles. Not so, replies David Keyt, since Aristotle, perhaps never recognizing it himself, approached his political philosophy from a fundamentally anarchistic base. Was Aristotle essentially a totalitarian or an anarchist? This paper attempts to answer that question. First, it interprets Barnes' argument as presented in his 1990 essay ?Aristotle and Political Liberty.? It then moves onto an exposition of David Keyt's position as put forward in his 1993 paper ?Aristotle and Anarchism.? Thereafter, the paper returns to Barnes' essay and examines each numbered point. By combining his own arguments with Keyt's insights, the author of the paper refutes Barnes' position.
From the Paper "This contention against slavery, Keyt suggests, "contains the seeds of philosophical anarchism," since its conclusion infers about slavery that no difference exists by nature between master and slave, and the rule of master over slave depends on force. The same can apply in the political arena: no difference exists by nature between ruler and subject, and political rule depends on force. Hence, "a wholesale challenge of political authority is but a short step from the wholesale challenge of slavery" (138). The main idea behind philosophical anarchism is that coercion is unjust, and "the rejection of political authority ... is not a first principle of the theory (of anarchism) but a corollary of its view about coercion and force" (138)."
Abstract In this paper the concept of environmentalism is looked at from a political point of view. Like communism, feminism, and anarchism, environmentalism was born out of people's concerns about the health of society, in this case, such concepts as resource quantity and quality. Covered in this paper are three core principles that have been determined by the course of history, three stages of growth for political application of ecological ideas, and the evolution it has undergone and how it has changed.
From the Paper "It was only relatively recently that humanity had become so concerned with the state of the environment that people began to look at the issue from a political angle. Only when decades of environmental degradation began to affect that quality of life for everyone did certain groups of people want to center their ideology around a sustainable lifestyle. These events in our history were paramount to the naissance of a new political ideology, known as environmentalism. During the last century, environmentalism evolved far beyond what the originators could have envisioned, gaining three core characteristics, increasing the amount of influence on politics, and undergoing changes that would help in creating a case for putting greater emphasis on the Earth. In the last hundred years, environmentalism has become an anti-anthropocentric, post-materialistic, and modern liberal ideology which has evolved from activism to bureaucracy to political parties and has changed its focus from isolated ecosystems to how our world is affected by people's actions."
