POLI 1001 Exam 2 Vocabulary Review

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering classical and modern political philosophy, constitutional theory, the Federalist Papers, and contemporary debates on constitutionalism and international law.

Polis (City-State)

The highest and most self-sufficient form of political community in Aristotle's thought, existing to help people live a good and virtuous life.

Oikonomia

Household management and the process of acquiring resources necessary to meet genuine human needs.

Chrematistics

The pursuit of wealth and money without a natural limit.

Eudaimonia

Human flourishing or living a genuinely good life, which Aristotle argues a good political community must help its citizens achieve.

Monarchy (Aristotle)

A correct form of government ruled by one person for the common good.

Tyranny (Aristotle)

A corrupt form of government ruled by one person for private interests.

Aristocracy (Aristotle)

A correct form of government ruled by a few individuals for the common good.

Oligarchy (Aristotle)

A corrupt form of government ruled by a few individuals for private interests.

Polity (Aristotle)

A correct form of government ruled by many individuals for the common good.

Democracy (Aristotle)

A corrupt form of government ruled by many individuals for private interests, which Aristotle considered bad.

Eternal Law

God's rational plan governing the universe, serving as the ultimate foundation of all legitimate law in Thomas Aquinas's philosophy.

Natural Law (Aquinas)

Human participation in eternal law through reason, grounded in the foundational precept that good is to be done and pursued, and evil is to be avoided.

Human Law

Laws created by people and governments to establish justice and order, such as determining specific punishments for crimes.

Divine Law

Law revealed by God through Scripture, providing moral direction beyond what human government can establish.

Deduction (Natural Law)

Working out naturally from basic precepts what natural law requires, such as deducing that killing innocent people is wrong and must be punished.

Determination (Aquinas)

The specification of particular rules or punishments by human authority when a principle could be implemented in multiple legitimate ways.

State of Nature (Hobbes)

A condition of perpetual conflict and state of war that exists when humans have no common government or sovereign to keep them in awe.

Diffidence (Hobbes)

Fear and mutual distrust that cause individuals in the state of nature to attack preemptively for their own security.

Glory (Hobbes)

A principal cause of conflict where individuals fight to protect and assert their reputation and honor.

Right of Nature (Hobbes)

The liberty each individual possesses to use their own power as they see fit to preserve their own life.

Law of Nature (Hobbes)

A general rule or rational principle that directs people toward self-preservation, the first of which is to seek peace.

Social Contract (Hobbes)

An agreement in which people surrender certain freedoms to authorize an absolute sovereign that enforces peace and maintains security.

The Leviathan

A biblical sea monster that Thomas Hobbes employs as a metaphor and symbol for the sovereign state.

Popular Sovereignty

The principle that political authority comes from, is sustained by, and remains legitimate through the consent of the people.

Federalism

A political system in which governmental power is divided between national and state governments.

Checks and Balances

A constitutional principle giving each branch of government the ability to limit and check the powers of the other branches.

Republicanism

A system of government where citizens exercise their political authority and decision-making power through elected representatives.

Great Compromise

The constitutional agreement creating a bicameral Congress consisting of population-based representation in the House and equal state representation in the Senate.

Three-Fifths Compromise

The constitutional agreement that counted enslaved persons as three-fifths of a person for purposes of legislative representation and direct taxation.

Faction (Federalist #10)

A group of citizens united by common interests or passions that are adverse to the rights of others or the permanent, common good of the community.

Originalism

An approach to constitutional interpretation asserting that the meaning of constitutional terms should remain fixed to when the document was written or when an amendment was ratified.

Competitive Authoritarianism

A political regime where formal democratic institutions exist, but leaders manipulate them to hold power and prevent fair competition.

Universal Jurisdiction

The legal principle allowing a state to prosecute extremely serious crimes regardless of where they occurred or the nationality of the perpetrator or victims.