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Our politics are our deepest form of expression: they mirror our past experiences and reflect our dreams and aspirations for the future.

~ Paul Wellstone, American academic and politician.

Imagine that you live in a small village. At its centre is a well, the only source of fresh drinking water for the entire community.

As this is a limited, but necessary resource for all, rules have been established so that each person in the village is allotted “just enough water to meet her or his needs.” And all goes well, for many years, until one summer the weather is unusually hot, and the water is not as plentiful.

Indeed, at times, it seems like the well is in danger of going dry!

In a state of alarm, the community comes together to try and determine what to do.

It is then that it is revealed that some members have not been adhering to the established rules: they have been taking more water than they were allotted, sneaking water in the dead of the night, and secretly hoarding it in their homes.

A heated argument ensues!

• “I work outside all day, unlike some of you who don’t engage in manual labour, so I need more water on these hot days!”
• “There has been no rain in weeks, and my garden is in danger of drying up. How will I feed my family if my garden dies? Think of the children!”
• “My business is thriving and requires more fresh water to expand our production. Should I impede its progress over a few extra buckets of water? If my business fails, a lot of people will be without jobs and our economy will suffer!”
• “I’m a very important member of this community, and have contributed greatly to the care and maintenance of this well through charitable donations. No one else here has the ability to look after this well - it wouldn’t even be standing if it were not for my efforts. Surely I should be allowed some special privileges?”

Before the arguing erupts into fistfights, you and a small group of level-headed community members ask for calm, and tell the village that through reasoning, you can come to a solution that will meet everyone’s needs and restore harmony.

The Tragedy of the Commons

In 1833, the English economist William Forster Lloyd published a pamphlet which included a hypothetical example of over-using a common resource.

Traditionally a “common” was a shared parcel of land, on which everyone in a community was entitled to let their cows graze. Commons were the custom in many villages in England at that time.

Lloyd’s concern was that if a herder put more than his allotted number of cows on the common, overgrazing could result. While the individual herder would benefit, the community on the whole would suffer. If all herders made the same decision - and only thought of their own needs and economic gain - then the common could be depleted, and even destroyed.

In 1968, ecologist Garrett Hardin revisited Lloyd’s original idea and adapted the term “common” to represent any and all shared resources - from water to air and even the family bathroom - any resource where access was potentially unregulated.

Like Lloyd, Hardin’s conclusion was that eventually resources would be depleted; Hardin even went further to point out that, if we rely on an individual’s conscience and sense of altruism as a means of safeguarding the common, then we are deluding ourselves.  

In other words, in the absence of regulation, many humans are selfish and act in their own self-interests; they rationalize their needs over others.

The Necessity of Governance

Staying alive is an imperative for any animal - it makes perfect sense that we all seek self-preservation. However, once we converge into groups, that basic human behaviour can be problematic, and needs to be regulated.  

If we go back to the world’s earliest civilization - Mesopotamia - you will note that even then, people realized that having so many individuals collectively living in one place, necessitated the formation of the first law codes. Drawn from legal precedence and decisions made by kings, the Code of Hammurabi (created c. 1780 B.C.E.), is one of the earliest examples of a code of law used to govern a society.

The Role of Government

In essence, the role of government is to enforce rules that promote harmony within a society.

In essence.

However, as you can imagine, deciding how we reach this harmony in our society is no easy task.

Consider these questions, for example:

• How do we decide who makes the rules?
• Does everyone have to abide by them?
• What do we do to those who do break the rules?
• Who enforces those rules?
• How far can the government go to enforce those rules?
• What happens if an individual or a group is unjustly accused of breaking those rules?

Refer to rules devised by the class in the Minds On section regarding the fair use of the well. Did anyone question why rules were needed? Or was it just accepted that for the community to run smoothly, rules had to be put in place?

The Responsibility of the State and the Individual

In political philosophy, a social contract is an agreement between the citizens and the sovereign power or state. (definition:A nation or territory considered as an organized political community under one government.) Through the social contract, each party agrees upon its respective rights and responsibilities towards the other in order to form the society in which they live. There is no actual piece of paper, no physical document that outlines what these rights and responsibilities are - although there are manifestations of something akin to it, such as the Charter of Rights established in 1982, or the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations. Citizens are ‘born’ into the agreement by virtue of existing within a society.

To get a better idea about the social contract that you just ‘seem’ to be a part of - and why we generally, complacently, follow it, please watch the following video about Thomas Hobbes and Contractarianism from Crash Course:

The ‘Best’ Political Order

So, we have an agreement with a ‘state,’ we promise to abide by the rules, and, in return, the state will look after us. However, what is this ‘state’ with which we are in agreement? How do we know that it has our best interests in mind?

Political philosophy explores this concept of the ideal or ‘best’ state. In Activity 2, we will learn about the social contract in greater depth, but for now, so you can understand the foundations for some of the political ideologies we are about to explore, let’s briefly look at a few of them.

Points to Ponder

As we delve further into this overview, consider how some of the philosophers’ theories regarding the relationship between the individual and the state reflect current political practices in our world.

In addition, consider whether any of these theories strike you as the ‘ideal’ society. If you had to choose, which philosophers’ theories seem to propose the best contract for both the state and the individual?

Long Description

Examining Political Styles

In conjunction with political ideologies, governments and political leaders use a variety of political styles to further the interests of the state. While there is some debate as to whether they are distinct ideologies in and of themselves (since they are not as well codified or philosophically grounded as the five examples of ideologies we just examined), these political styles have shaped much of world history and governments since the twentieth century. For example, a government can follow a particular ideology, and be in a particular style, such as Liberal Nationalism. 

Long Description

 Summarize and Assess: The Principles of Government

Now that you have been introduced, or in the case of those who have taken Gr. 10 Civics - reintroduced - to some of the key principals of government that we will investigate in this unit, it is time to summarize your learning.

Your Task:

To assist in synthesizing the information presented in this activity, you will create a diagram - a mindmap, flowchart, or infographic - that demonstrates your understanding of the aspects that define, differentiate, and connect different political ideologies and political styles to each other. Follow the steps below to complete the task.

Step 1: Learn

Choose three political ideologies and four political styles from the lists below. These will form the ‘backbone’ or nodules to your diagram.

Political Ideologies (Choose three)	Political Styles (Choose four)
Liberalism Conservatism Socialism Absolutism Anarchism	Nationalism Fascism Fundamentalism Marxism Confucianism Totalitarianism Utopianism Libertarianism Contractualism Mohism Communitarianism

Step 2: Research

For this task, you are required to look for the following information:

• What are the pros and cons for each ideology and style? Provide three to five factors or reasons for each advantage/disadvantage for each term.
• Which philosophers, thinkers, and/or historical figures are most associated with each particular ideology or style? Provide at least two for each and clarify how they are connected.
• Provide one real world example of each ideology and style.
• Draw parallels between similar and dissimilar ideologies and styles. For example, when speaking of Socialism, what political style is often connected with it? When speaking of Liberalism, which ideology is in contrast, or in direct conflict with it? Provide at least one example for each term.
• Summarize your research by presenting your assessment of the ideologies and political styles you researched. In a brief paragraph, explain which principal of government is, in your opinion, the best possible form to govern a society, given human nature and the purpose of the state. Make direct reference to the material and examples you have presented in your diagram.

Remember to archive all of your resources as you are required to provide them in APA format with your finished diagram.

Step 3: Create

Create your mindmap, flowchart, or infographic. You will likely want to use digital applications such as Mindomo or Prezi, but other options may also be available. 

Remember to cite the sources you used in APA format.

Your diagram may include an image or visual for each term, but this is not required. Ensure that you define the connections between the ideologies and political styles visually, whether you achieve this through colour, theme, or connecting lines between terms.

Submit Your Work

The Most Perfect Society

As you may have gathered from this activity, there are a variety of opinions as to what constructs would be best to put in place to achieve the perfect society. From the beginning of civilization in Mesopotamia, we have sought a way to address some of the more problematic characteristics of human nature - so that individuals can achieve some form of harmony and cooperation when living together.

Is that aim achievable?

Is there a way for us to reach and maintain a perfect society?