Social Philosophy - READINGS

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418 Terms

1
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State of nature (Jonathan Wolff)

A hypothetical situation where no political authority or state exists@

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Purpose of the state of nature thought experiment (Jonathan Wolff)

Used to explore why we need the state and what life would be like without it@

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Rousseau's view (Jonathan Wolff)

Argued that it is implausible that modern civil society evolved naturally from a state of nature@

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Hobbes' central claim (Jonathan Wolff)

Believed life without a strong state would be a state of war@

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Hobbes' materialist view of human nature (Jonathan Wolff)

Describes humans as physical beings in constant motion, driven by desire@

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Hobbes' definition of power (Jonathan Wolff)

Power is defined as the present means to obtain future apparent goods@

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Equality in the state of nature (Jonathan Wolff)

People are equally capable of killing each other, which creates insecurity@

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Three causes of conflict (Jonathan Wolff)

Humans attack each other for gain, safety, and reputation@

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Definition of war (Jonathan Wolff)

Conflict happens not only through fighting but through the constant readiness to fight@

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Justice in the state of nature (Jonathan Wolff)

There is no justice or injustice without a sovereign to enforce laws@

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Right of nature (Jonathan Wolff)

The right to do whatever is necessary for self-preservation@

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Law of nature (Jonathan Wolff)

A general rule discovered by reason that forbids self-destructive actions@

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First law of nature (Jonathan Wolff)

Seek peace if others do too; otherwise use all means for self-defense@

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Second law of nature (Jonathan Wolff)

Give up some rights if others do too; accept mutual liberty@

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Third law of nature (Jonathan Wolff)

Covenants must be kept to create justice@

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Individual vs collective rationality (Jonathan Wolff)

People act rationally as individuals but irrationally as a group@

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Why laws of nature fail without a state (Jonathan Wolff)

Without enforcement, even rational people will act selfishly@

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Limits of obeying natural laws (Jonathan Wolff)

Internal motivation is not enough; people only obey when others do too@

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Passions that support peace (Jonathan Wolff)

Fear of death, desire for comfort, and hope for peace push people toward the state@

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Creation of the commonwealth (Jonathan Wolff)

People mutually agree to give up their right to govern themselves to a sovereign@

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Definition of the commonwealth (Jonathan Wolff)

One person or assembly is authorized to represent the will of all for peace and safety@

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Sovereign's legitimacy (Jonathan Wolff)

The sovereign is created by agreement between the people, not a contract with the ruler@

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Irrevocability of sovereignty (Jonathan Wolff)

Once created, the sovereign cannot be disobeyed without injustice@

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Purpose of the state (Jonathan Wolff)

Only the sovereign can enforce covenants and ensure justice@

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State of nature (Thomas Hobbes)

A condition where no common power exists to keep people in awe@

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Equality of men (Thomas Hobbes)

All men are naturally equal in strength and intellect; even the weakest can kill the strongest@

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Competition, distrust, glory (Thomas Hobbes)

Three main causes of conflict in the state of nature@

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War (Thomas Hobbes)

Not just battle, but a known disposition to fight with no assurance of peace@

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Consequences of war (Thomas Hobbes)

No agriculture, trade, knowledge, society; life is 'solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short'@

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Justice and injustice (Thomas Hobbes)

Do not exist in the state of nature, since there is no law or common authority@

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Right of nature (Thomas Hobbes)

The liberty each man has to use his own power for self-preservation@

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Law of nature (Thomas Hobbes)

A precept discovered by reason, forbidding self-destructive behavior@

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First law of nature (Thomas Hobbes)

Seek peace and follow it, when possible@

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Second law of nature (Thomas Hobbes)

Be willing to give up some liberty if others do too, for peace@

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Third law of nature (Thomas Hobbes)

Covenants must be kept; the foundation of justice@

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Covenant (Thomas Hobbes)

Mutual agreement between individuals, not with the sovereign@

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Justice (Thomas Hobbes)

The keeping of valid covenants@

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Injustice (Thomas Hobbes)

The breaking of covenants@

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Why covenants fail in nature (Thomas Hobbes)

There is no enforcement or fear of punishment@

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Need for a common power (Thomas Hobbes)

Only a sovereign can compel people to keep covenants@

41
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Creation of the commonwealth (Thomas Hobbes)

Individuals give up rights to one man or assembly for peace and defense@

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Definition of the commonwealth (Thomas Hobbes)

A single person represents the will of all; authorized by mutual covenant@

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Sovereign by institution (Thomas Hobbes)

Created voluntarily by agreement among people@

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Sovereign's rights (Thomas Hobbes)

Holds all power; cannot be lawfully overthrown@

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Subjects' obligations (Thomas Hobbes)

Must submit their will and judgment to the sovereign@

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Covenants with God (Thomas Hobbes)

Not valid unless mediated by the sovereign@

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Liberty (Thomas Hobbes)

Absence of external obstacles; consistent with sovereign rule@

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Fool's argument (Thomas Hobbes)

Claims injustice may still be rational if it benefits oneself@

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Law and obligation (Thomas Hobbes)

Law commands or forbids; right allows choice@

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Civil peace (Thomas Hobbes)

Secured only through fear of the sovereign's power@

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Marx's definition of capitalism (Richard W. Miller)
A system where the proletariat sells labor to the bourgeoisie who own the means of production
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Why wage-labor is exploitative (Richard W. Miller)
Workers have inferior bargaining power and limited alternatives due to systemic conditions
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Unpaid labor (Richard W. Miller)
The part of the working day where workers create value beyond their wages, benefiting capitalists
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Alienation (Richard W. Miller)
Workers are disconnected from their work, others, and themselves; labor becomes just a means of survival
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Exploitation under capitalism (Richard W. Miller)
Capitalists benefit from structural weaknesses imposed on workers, who have no real choice but to sell labor
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Why the state supports capitalism (Richard W. Miller)
The state structurally serves bourgeois interests through media, finance, and elite networks
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Three mechanisms of capitalist state power (Richard W. Miller)
1) Long-term bourgeois interest; 2) Enduring mechanisms of bias; 3) Repressive force when needed
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Marx’s critique of liberal egalitarianism (Richard W. Miller)
It ignores how exploitation and alienation make formal equality insufficient
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Freedom in Marx’s critique (Richard W. Miller)
True freedom means the ability to identify with one’s work and live without alienation
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Alienated labor (Richard W. Miller)
Work that lacks autonomy, creativity, and dignity; endured rather than embraced
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The role of crisis in Marx's theory (Richard W. Miller)
Capitalism's instabilities would lead to revolution and workers' control of production
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The false neutrality of liberalism (Richard W. Miller)
Efforts to remain neutral among ways of life often ignore the reality of capitalist exploitation
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Marx’s view on proletarian choices (Richard W. Miller)
Workers’ alternatives to wage-labor are so bad they amount to forced choice
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Marx’s theory of the state (Richard W. Miller)
The state is a tool that manages capitalist interests, not a neutral body
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Political consequence of exploitation (Richard W. Miller)
Policies to mitigate exploitation (e.g. taxation) are expressions of freedom, not limitations
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Materialist conception of history (Karl Marx)
The idea that material conditions (economy, labor, production) shape society's structure and consciousness
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Base and superstructure (Karl Marx)
Economic base shapes and determines the political, legal, and ideological superstructure
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Social being determines consciousness (Karl Marx)
People's material conditions of life shape their ideas and beliefs—not the other way around
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Relations of production (Karl Marx)
Social relationships formed around the production of goods, shaped by the level of productive forces
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Productive forces (Karl Marx)
Tools, technology, and human labor that drive material production
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Contradiction leading to revolution (Karl Marx)
Conflict between developing productive forces and static relations of production
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Epoch of social revolution (Karl Marx)
A period when existing property relations become fetters and are overthrown
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Asiatic, ancient, feudal, bourgeois (Karl Marx)
Four progressive modes of production in Marx's historical model
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Bourgeois society's role (Karl Marx)
Creates the material conditions necessary to overcome class antagonism
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No social order perishes before... (Karl Marx)
All its productive potential has been exhausted
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Marx's method of study (Karl Marx)
Scientific; ascends from the particular to the general; avoids ideological assumptions
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Legal and political forms (Karl Marx)
Expressions of material economic relationships
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Ideological forms (Karl Marx)
Legal, political, religious, and artistic forms through which people become conscious of social conflicts
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Marx's early focus (Karl Marx)
Critique of Hegel and the realization that political economy is the basis of social life
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Collaboration with Engels (Karl Marx)
Worked together to critique German philosophy and develop scientific socialism
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Civil society (Karl Marx)
The realm of material life and economic activity; the foundation upon which legal and political institutions rest
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Conflict between productive forces and relations of production (Karl Marx)
The driver of social change; when productive capacity outgrows existing property and class relations, revolution becomes possible
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Property relations (Karl Marx)
Legal expression of relations of production; eventually become fetters on productive forces
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Consciousness of conflict (Karl Marx)
Humans become aware of contradictions through ideological forms like law, religion, philosophy
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No social order perishes before... (Karl Marx)
It has exhausted its productive potential and new material conditions have emerged within it
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"Mankind only sets itself tasks it can solve" (Karl Marx)
Historical development only poses problems for which material conditions of resolution are emerging or present
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Progressive epochs of production (Karl Marx)
Asiatic, ancient, feudal, and bourgeois are historical stages, each progressively expanding productive potential
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Bourgeois mode of production as the last antagonistic stage (Karl Marx)
Last class-based system; contains the seeds (productive forces) of its own dissolution and the emergence of socialism
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End of prehistory (Karl Marx)
The transition from bourgeois to post-class society marks the beginning of true human history
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Critique of ideology (Karl Marx)
Awareness that legal, political, and religious beliefs are shaped by material life, not abstract reasoning or eternal truths
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What is alienation according to Marx
A structural condition under capitalism where workers are estranged from their labor, products, selves, and others
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Alienation from the product of labor (Karl Marx)
The worker produces objects they do not own; the product becomes alien and confronts the worker as a hostile power
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Quotes for alienation from the product (Karl Marx)
“The more the worker produces, the less he has to consume” / “The object that labor produces... stands outside of him as something alien”
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Alienation in the process of labor (Karl Marx)
Labor is forced and external, not voluntary or self-directed; the worker feels human only outside work
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Quotes for alienation in the labor process (Karl Marx)
“Labor is not voluntary but forced” / “In his human functions he no longer feels himself to be anything but an animal”
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Alienation from species-being (Karl Marx)
Humans are species-beings who should labor freely and consciously, but capitalism reduces labor to survival
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Quotes for alienation from species-being (Karl Marx)
“Estranged labor tears from him his species-life”
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Alienation from other humans (Karl Marx)
Estranged labor leads to estrangement between people; others are seen as competitors or oppressors
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Quotes for alienation from others (Karl Marx)
“What applies to a man’s relation to his work... also holds of a man’s relation to the other man”