POLITICAL SELF

Lecture series
Jong Bagay
[email protected]
09455790668
WHAT IS MEANT WITH BEING POLITICAL?

‘Political’ relates to the way power is achieved and used in a

country or society.
It also relates to government or public affairs of a country or
Ideas and strategies of a particular party or group in politics

Also referred to as Public sphere- (German Öffentlichkeit) is an

area in social life where individuals can come together to freely
discuss and identify societal problems, and through that
discussion influence political action.
Politics in General
The word “politics” comes from the Greek word “polis”
which means “city-state.” In the ancient world, city-states are small
countries regarded as centers of culture and civilization where people
interact under a unified government. What transpires in the polis is
politics.
The origin of the word therefore suggests that politics is a term
encompassing the totality of human activities transpiring within the
city-state.
As it is applied now, it denotes everything that transpires in the state as
well as among states.
Politics as conflict resolution
• Politics denotes a social activity. It is in essence the interaction of
individuals. As the Greek philosopher Aristotle explains, it is the master
science through which individuals collectively set structure, purpose, and
ideals in their lives. Politics, therefore, does not emerge from the activities
of a single individual but from that of many.
• Politics is about conflict and cooperation. On the one hand, conflict is
caused by the diversity among individuals. People differ in the way they
perceive things, and disagree in almost every conceivable aspect of life. On
the other hand, cooperation is motivated by men’s common goal of
achieving a happy life. While it is true that men argue and fight, it is also
undeniable that they desire for peace. The process of overcoming conflict
to attain order and thereafter maintain that order is politics. In other
words, politics is essentially conflict resolution.
Politics and societal norms
Politics is the creation, maintenance, and amendment of societal norms
or rules. While politics as conflict resolution aims at establishing order
in the society, the basis of order today is law. Undeniably, religion and
other archaic institutions have already lost their central role as sources
of order. It is law now that serves as the undisputed order-establishing
institution. Modern states and international organizations rely on the
adequacy and efficacy of their laws to meet the demands of the people
to attain domestic and international peace. Politics therefore, in its
broad sense means conflict resolution through the creation,
maintenance, and amendment of societal norms or rules.
BASIC CONCEPTS: ORDER, POWER, and
JUSTICE
1. ORDER
Order is central to the study of politics because it shows the different
components of human societies. Politics after all exists in diverse forms or
levels of societal structures. These structures or orders are community,
government, and state:
(a) Community is one kind of social order which refers to an association of individuals who share a
common identity.
(b) Government is a higher level of social order that exists primarily for the maintenance and
perpetuation of the community. It is said to possess “sovereignty” if it can successfully assert
its claim to rule. And it is said to “legitimate” if its claim to rule (authority) is willingly accepted
(c) State refers to a community of persons more or less numerous, permanently occupying a
definite portion of territory, having a government of their own to which the great body of
inhabitants render obedience, and enjoying freedom from external control
2. POWER
The different social orders cannot be maintained without power. Their
creation and perpetuation are brought about by the exercise of power and
the concomitant establishment of structures.
It is elementary to know that power has many sources aside from physical
force. These include wealth, culture, diplomatic relations and intelligence, to
name a few. The basic rule is that the more abundant the power source, the
greater the capabilities of the government.[3] In a narrower sense, power
implies “power over” people rather than the “power or ability to” do
something. This includes influence over the behavior of others, making them
do things which they would not otherwise have done. Under such meaning
of power, politics involves manipulation through the popular methods of
reward and punishment.
3.JUSTICE
It is said that the correct exercise of power produces justice. If in the
exercise of its power and authority, the government gives what the
people need, protect and respect their rights, and put the common
good over and above the personal interest of the leaders, then there is
said to be justice.
It must be highlighted that the embodiment of order and power in this
modern times is law, whether written or customary. Thus, law is said to
be the approximation of justice. Justice is that on which law is
anchored.
However, since law is a mere “approximation” of the ideal concept of
justice, it is never perfect. Sometimes the law becomes unjust because
it can no longer capture perfect justice. An innocent person, for
instance, may be convicted, or a perpetrator may be acquitted of a
crime because of the technicalities and restrictions of the law on
evidence. Nevertheless, law must still be upheld since it is still the best
medium of justice and by which power may be exercised correctly for
the promotion of societal order.
Therefore the self obtains political character as it becomes
situated to order, power, and justice.
Q: How extensive does the self assume
political identity?
A: It depends on the provisions of the laws relative to participation and
involvement of an individual.
Most fundamental forms of individual participation:
1.election
2. referendum
3.tax payment
4. public forum (social media)
5. public protest
How does the self relate to Order?
As the Community provides social order through the aspect of common
identification, it is the role of the individual to realize his/her part in the
building and preservation of such identity.
Knowledge of geography, history, philosophy, religion, ideology,
language, race, and allegiance within a community enables the
preservation of group identity.
How does oneself relate to Power?
This denotes coercion or the influencing of the behavior of others,
making them do things which they would not otherwise have done.
Under such meaning of power, politics involves manipulation through
the popular methods of reward and punishment.
The self therefore is in a moral situation of choosing/deciding whether
the laws and regulations enforced upon him/her are able to result to
the social order and development. Power is a political means that may
be accepted or rejected in accordance to basic rationality and dignity of
selves.
How does one relate to Justice?
Law is the approximation of order because it should apply to everyone,
thus aiming for Justice. Despite the imperfection of law,it is still
considered as the best channel of justice and order. It is unimaginable
how there can be a civil society and an orderly individual without law
and the concept of equality.
The individual therefore has to be knowledgeable and respectful of the
law and just by mere adherence to these implies one’s consciousness
of fairness and equality. The government on one hand must be the
exemplar of justice as it strictly applies laws to everyone regardless of
social status and position. Failure of both the individual and the
government to follow the law is tantamount to the breakdown of
justice and order.
Political self, therefore, is the participation of an
individual in a society characterized by order,
power, and justice. Every self has its political
character since everyone obtains an identity
derived from a group, gets coerced in varying
degrees to follow the law but is likewise free to
protest in accord to reason and human dignity,
and has an insight of order achievable primarily
with one’s assumption of Justice.