Normative Political theory

Question 1

Definition Normative Political Theory

Answer 1

The study of concepts and principles for evaluating, critiquing, and prescribing political action, events, and institutions.

Question 2

Characteristics:

Answer 2

Engages in normative claims.
Involves prescriptive or evaluative statements that require coherent and defendable arguments.

Question 3

Distinct from Empirical Approach:

Answer 3

Doesn’t take a position in ontology or epistemology.
Concerned with the actual world of politics.
Aims to understand how political events are normatively evaluated.

Question 4

Core Themes in Political Theory:

Answer 4

Analyzing Political Affairs:
Focus on themes such as power, legitimacy, authority, justice, equality, rights, ideology, and obligation.
Normative Focus:
Normative political theorists integrate empirical claims into their analyses.

Question 5

History of Political Thought Definition

Answer 5

A subdiscipline of Political Theory that examines canonical thinkers and their influence.

Question 6

History of Political Thought: Approaches:

Answer 6

Exegetical textual analysis.
Historical ideas in context.
Historical ideas applied to contemporary problems

Question 7

Fact/Value Distinction: Traditional View:

Answer 7

Positivist separation of facts (what is) and values (what should be).

Question 8

Fact/Value distinction Critique:

Answer 8

Contested by Frankfurt School theorists, suggesting value judgments are inherent in empirical political science.

Question 9

Empirical vs. Normative Statements:

Answer 9

Empirical Statements: Describe factual occurrences.
Normative Statements: Convey value judgments or prescribe actions.

Question 10

Normative Arguments
Structure:

Answer 10

Normative arguments consist of at least one normative premise (Y) often combined with empirical premises (Z).

Question 11

Normative Arguments
Example:

Answer 11

Torture is always wrong (Y), Waterboarding is a form of torture (Z), The CIA waterboarded Al Qaeda suspects in 2002 (Z), What the CIA did was morally reprehensible (X).

Question 12

John Rawls’ Theory of Justice:
Principles

Answer 12

Consistent with specific judgments of justice.
Impartial, derived from behind a ‘veil of ignorance.’

Question 13

Political Theory and Political Science:
Analytical Separation:

Answer 13

Empirical and normative claims can be analytically separate.

Question 14

Political Theory and Political Science:
integration

Answer 14

Comparative political science is needed to discover the best form of government.

Question 15

Frankfurt School on Fact/Value:

Answer 15

Contested View: Adorno, Horkheimer, and Habermas argue that value judgments are inescapable in empirical political science.

Question 16

Contextualist Turn:

Answer 16

Institutionalist Turn: Rawls instigated an institutionalist turn in political theory.
Contextualist Turn: Explores weaknesses of Rawls, leading to areas like non-ideal theory, global distributive justice, closed societies, just migration, and self-determination.

Question 17

Bridging the Gap: Political Theory/Science:

Answer 17

Political Science can include value judgements
in deciding how to study and what to study

Methodology Debate: Should the study of politics be methods-driven or problem-solving?

Question 18

Combining Normative and Empirical Work:
Examples:

Answer 18

Empirical study of normative attitudes/beliefs.
Studying institutionally embedded norms.
Qualitative case studies.
Quantitative comparative studies.