What Is Politics?
Politics is about people coming to agreements on how to live together in groups such as tribes, cities and countries. This includes sharing resources, deciding what laws to make and what wars to fight. It also involves building things for the shared use of all members of the group such as roads, schools and docks. People who spend a lot of time on politics are called politicians and the study of politics is often known as political science, government or public administration.
Some of the earliest thinkers on politics were Plato and Aristotle, who argued that humans need to organize themselves into societies and governments in order to manage their affairs properly. Their work established the concept of politics as a set of principles for managing human society. The modern idea of politics is rooted in the ideas of these Greek philosophers and has evolved to include a wide range of activities that deal with how human beings come to agreements on what they should do to survive and prosper.
One common way of thinking about politics is to look at it as a kind of game that involves players maneuvering for influence over others. This can involve access to limited societal resources, precious rights and privileges or something as mundane as tax breaks. Politics can also be seen as a way to settle conflict through the use of power, which may include force.
Regardless of how it is defined, politics is an important part of human life. It is a fundamental part of any society and it influences all areas of human life, including economics, society, culture, religion and even the natural environment. The most effective politicians are able to understand this fact and they know how to play the political game.
Some political scientists have pushed the boundaries of what is considered to be part of politics. Some have argued that politics is everything that has to do with how human beings get what they want from each other, including the use of force and the rules of the game. Other political scholars have objected to this stretching, arguing that if you expand the definition of politics too much it can become meaningless.
Politics occurs on many social levels, from clans and tribes to local government agencies, universities and businesses. The most important level for most people, however, is the national or sovereign state. It is here that political processes such as elections and referendums take place. Most states have a president, elected by the people, and legislative bodies consisting of two houses, the Senate and the House of Representatives or Assembly. Some states have unicameral legislatures while others, such as Nebraska, have a unicameral upper house and bicameral lower house. In addition, most nations are members of international organizations that participate in global politics. Some of these institutions include the World Trade Organization and the United Nations. In general, global politics is characterized by an effort to achieve universal agreement on important issues such as globalization, poverty, climate change and security.
Politics is about people coming to agreements on how to live together in groups such as tribes, cities and countries. This includes sharing resources, deciding what laws to make and what wars to fight. It also involves building things for the shared use of all members of the group such as roads, schools and docks. People who spend a lot of time on politics are called politicians and the study of politics is often known as political science, government or public administration. Some of the earliest thinkers on politics were Plato and Aristotle, who argued that humans need to organize themselves into societies and governments in order to manage their affairs properly. Their work established the concept of politics as a set of principles for managing human society. The modern idea of politics is rooted in the ideas of these Greek philosophers and has evolved to include a wide range of activities that deal with how human beings come to agreements on what they should do to survive and prosper. One common way of thinking about politics is to look at it as a kind of game that involves players maneuvering for influence over others. This can involve access to limited societal resources, precious rights and privileges or something as mundane as tax breaks. Politics can also be seen as a way to settle conflict through the use of power, which may include force. Regardless of how it is defined, politics is an important part of human life. It is a fundamental part of any society and it influences all areas of human life, including economics, society, culture, religion and even the natural environment. The most effective politicians are able to understand this fact and they know how to play the political game. Some political scientists have pushed the boundaries of what is considered to be part of politics. Some have argued that politics is everything that has to do with how human beings get what they want from each other, including the use of force and the rules of the game. Other political scholars have objected to this stretching, arguing that if you expand the definition of politics too much it can become meaningless. Politics occurs on many social levels, from clans and tribes to local government agencies, universities and businesses. The most important level for most people, however, is the national or sovereign state. It is here that political processes such as elections and referendums take place. Most states have a president, elected by the people, and legislative bodies consisting of two houses, the Senate and the House of Representatives or Assembly. Some states have unicameral legislatures while others, such as Nebraska, have a unicameral upper house and bicameral lower house. In addition, most nations are members of international organizations that participate in global politics. Some of these institutions include the World Trade Organization and the United Nations. In general, global politics is characterized by an effort to achieve universal agreement on important issues such as globalization, poverty, climate change and security.