Political Theory Exam

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1. What is the connection between politics and economics in the theory of Karl Marx? For what reasons—historical, social, or theoretical, for example—do Hobbes and Locke place far less emphasis on economics and much greater emphasis on politics than does Marx?

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The connection between politics and economics in the theory of karl marx is Marxism. Marxism is the belief that the struggle between social classes is a major force in history and that there should eventually be a society in which there are no classes. / 4. Hobbes was not concerned with the economy and was trying to find a way to end political conflict during the civil war/locoke was concermed with economy as it only dealt with peoples rights

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2. In what ways does the political philosophy of Edmund Burke differ from the theories of Locke, Hobbes, and Rousseau? Consider, as just one example, how it is that Burke, who witnessed the horrors of the French Revolution, does not conclude on the need for a Great Leviathan, as did Hobbes, who witnessed the horrors of the English Civil War.

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Burke differed because he was the first traditional conservative, not a liberal. . Burke’s theory is organic and he believed that humans are ordered by nature. The differences between burke witnessing the French revolution and hobbess witnessing the civil war was the civil war was just a political conflict because of the monarchy while the French revolution wanted to change every part of life including politics, religion, social stability, and economy.

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3. The ability to reason has often been seen as the attribute that distinguishes human beings from other animals. To one degree or another, in all the philosophers we have studied—with the exception of Nietzsche—the requirements of reason are seen as determining the nature the ideal state; the presence of reason is probably seen most clearly in Plato and Hobbes and less so in Burke and Nietzsche. How does Nietzsche regard human reason and what would be the premises on which his ideal state would be built? Why?

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Nietzsche does not find it necessary to use reason at all . He believes when someone uses reason, they loose there sense of morarlity. Also By his time, reason and Christianity were undermined by ideas from Darwin and Freud In regards to the state, he thought people should act on their own without regard to social standards. He thought the government should be run by an aristocracy, meaning a small handful of elites

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4. At stake in any political discussion is a deeper concern about what it means to be a human being. Who are we? Where are we going? Where have we come from? Such are the questions in any approach to politics, which always takes a stand on the meaning and purpose of life. How are these questions answered by Locke, Burke, Marx, and Nietzsche?

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