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Flashcards by Owen Buchan, updated more than 1 year ago
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Created by Yasmine King
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Copied by Owen Buchan
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| Question | Answer |
| Feudalism | A system of agrarian-based production that is characterized by social hierarchies and a rigid pattern of obligations |
| Divine right | The doctrine that earthly rulers are chosen by God and thus wield unchallengeable authority; divine right is a defense of monarchical absolutism |
| Abolutism | A form of government in which political power is concentrated in the hands of a single individual or small group, in particular, an absolute monarchy |
| Classical Liberalism | A tradition within liberalism that seeks to maximize the realm of unconstrained individual action, typically by establishing a minimal state and a reliance on market economics |
| Modern Liberalism | A tradition within liberalism that provides a qualified endorsement for social and economic intervention as a means of promoting personal development |
| (the) Enlightenment | An intellectual movement that reached its heights in the eighteenth century and challenged traditional beliefs in religion, politics and learning in general in the name of reason and progress |
| Atomism (Thatcher = There is no such thing as society?) | A belief that society is made up of a collection of self- interested and largely self-sufficient individuals, or atoms, rather than social groups |
| Human nature | The essential and innate character of all human beings: what they owe to nature rather than to society |
| Freedom/ liberty | The ability to think or act as one wishes, a capacity that can be associated with the individual, a social group or a nation |
| Negative Freedom | The absence of external restrictions or constraints on the individual, allowing freedom of choice |
| Positive freedom | Self-mastery or self-realization; the achievement of autonomy or the development of human capacities |
| Paternalism (One Nation Conservatism) | Authority exercised from above for the guidance and support of those below, modelled on the relationship between fathers and children |
| Justice | A moral standard of fairness and impartiality; social justice is the notion of a fair or justifiable distribution of wealth and rewards in society |
| Equality | The principle that human beings are of identical worth or are entitled to be treated in the same way; equality can have widely differing applications |
| Meritocracy | Literally, rule by those with merit, merit being intelligence plus effort; a society in which social position is determined exclusively by ability and hard work |
| Pluralism | A belief in diversity or choice, or the theory that political power is or should be widely and evenly dispersed |
| Toleration | Forbearance; a willingness to accept views or actions with which one is in disagreement |
| Autonomy | Literally, self-government; the ability to control one's own destiny by virtue of enjoying independence from external influences |
| Law | Established and public rules of social conduct, backed up by the machinery of the state the police, courts and prisons |
| Government | The machinery through which collective decisions are made on behalf of the state, usually comprising a legislature, executive and judiciary |
| State | An association that establishes sovereign power within defined territorial area, usually possessing a monopoly of coercive power |
| Social Contract | A agreement among individuals through which they form a state in order to escape from the disorder and chaos of the state of nature |
| State of nature | A pre-political society characterized by unrestrained freedom and the absence of established authority |
| Democracy | Rule by the people; democracy implies both popular participation and government in the public interests, and can take a wide variety of forms |
| Written Constitution | A single authoritative document that defines the duties, powers and functions of government institutions and so constitutes 'higher' law. |
| Bill of Rights 1689 | A constitutional document that specifies the rights and freedoms of the individual and so defines the relationships between the state and its citizens |
| Rule of law | The principle that all conduct and behaviour, of private citizens and government officials, should conform to a framework of law |
| Separation of powers | The principle that legislative, executive and judicial power should be separated through the construction of three independent branches of government |
| Federalism | A territorial distribution of power based on the sharing of sovereignty between central bodies and regional or provincial ones. |
| Civil Liberty | The private sphere of existence, belonging to the citizen, not to the state; freedom from government |
| Civil society | A realm of autonomous associations and groups, formed by private citizens and enjoying independence from the government; civil society includes businesses, clubs, families and so on. |
| Majoritarianism | A belief in majority rule; majoritarianism implies either that the majority dominates the minority, or the minority should defer to the judgement of the majority |
| Consent | Assent or permission; in politics, usually an agreement to be governed or ruled |
| Consensus | A broad agreement on fundamental principles that allows for disagreement on matters of emphasis or detail |
| Natural Rights | God-given rights that are fundamental to human beings and are therefore inalienable (can't be taken away) |
| Utility | Use- value; in economics, utility describes the satisfaction that is gained from the consumption of material goods and services |
| Mercantilism | A school of economic thought that emphasizes the state's role in managing international trade and delivering prosperity |
| Market | A system of commercial exchange between buyers and sellers, controlled by impersonal economic forces: 'market forces' |
| Free market | The principle or policy of unfettered market competition, free from government interference |
| Laissez-faire | Literally. 'leave to do'; the doctrine that economic activity should be entirely free from government interference |
| Market fundamentalism | An absolute faith in the market, reflecting the belief that the market mechanism offers solutions to all economic and social problems |
| Individuality | self- fulfillment achieved through the realization of an individual's distinctive or unique identity or qualities; what distinguishes one person from all others |
| Altruism | Concern for the interests and welfare of others, based either on enlightened self-interests or a belief in a common humanity |
| Welfare State | A state that takes primary responsibility for the social welfare of its citizens, discharged through a range of social- security, health, education and other services |
| Free trade | A system of trade between states not restricted by tariffs or other forms of protectionism |
| Human development | A standard of human well-being that reflects people's ability to lead fulfilled and creative lives, taking into account factors such as life expectancy, education, ecological sustainability and gender equality |
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