Although the representation of women in national parliaments has been on the increase since World War Two, the number of women in assemblies has yet to reach 20 percent. The parliaments in which women participate with 30 or 40 percent are most viewed as laudable exceptions rather than (as yet) the unattained objective. The reasons lie in the specific gender obstacles ie., political, socio-economic & socio-cultural factors affecting the entry of women into parliaments. This paper deals with these factors & the consequences of a stronger female representation for the political system & the society on the whole. The author concludes that besides satisfying the ideal of justice the increased share of women in national parliaments may improve the position of women in the society & also strengthen the trust of both women & men in representative institutions. Tables, Graphs, References. Adapted from the source document.
The author analyzes the controversial concept of globalization from its technological, political, cultural, economic, & social aspects. He refers to S. Huntington, & also to J. Gray, & uses P. Chatterjee's arguments on nationalist strategy & politics. Jameson concludes that combination, social collective, & global regulation are at the core of all strategically successful responses to the globalization trends. Adapted from the source document.
The text provides a presentation & appraisal of the relation between globalization & politics in Ulrich Beck's recent works. Engaging with the issues of globalization, globalism & globality, Beck propounds the following answer to globalization challenges -- the cosmopolitan state. Consequently, the text analytically examines whether Europe could be the answer to globalization, & whether the idea of cosmopolitism could bear forth the heritage of ideas which marked the twentieth century. Adapted from the source document.
Comparative politics is a political science discipline that has in its evolution continuously reflected developments in the field of international politics. The author outlines the genesis of this discipline, which boomed in the 1950s within the framework of American politology & then goes on to give an account of the evolution of the fundamental research principles, the expansion of the subject matter, & the importance of the key concepts that delineate this academic discipline (political power, political system, political regime). The author analyzes the role of comparative politics in the context of other disciplines of political sciences as well as its applicative potentials. Through an analysis of the history of this discipline he points to the connection between the shift of interest in & focus on practical politics & the thematically specialized subdisciplines within comparative politological research. In conclusion, the author points out the importance & value of this discipline for Croatia (as a country in the process of democratic transition) with regard to comparative analyses of the experiences of developed democracies & countries in transition. Adapted from the source document.
In his analysis of the role of animals in political theory, ideology, & practice, the author claims that they are mostly used as metaphors, while in the world of real politics, people are not just considered & spoken of as animals, but are treated as such as well. The text includes several motifs from this substantial, historically well-documented, extensive topic. Political thinking in antiquity distinguishes a man from an animal, while the Renaissance & the modern political theory recognize the animality in politics. In contemporary theories & collective psychology, there are the motifs of rulers, shepherds & people, & erds. In fables as a literary genre, animals serve to teach the nature of politics as well as proper & improper political behavior. Adapted from the source document.
The central features of the political "profile" of European women at the beginning of this decade were a diminished interest in politics, infrequent inclusion of political topics in private conversations, & decreased willingness to adopt a political option. Compared to other European countries, Croatia projects an entirely different image: a pronounced interest of women in politics, very similar to that of men! This partly proves the "law" that a rise in level of education, working outside home, & middle age are the catalysts for women's desire to enter the world of politics. The transition, the war, & the "legacy" of socialist ideology account for this massive public interest in politics & the much lessened gender differences. 14 Tables, 5 References. Adapted from the source document.
The central features of the political "profile" of European women at the beginning of this decade were a diminished interest in politics, infrequent inclusion of political topics in private conversations, & decreased willingness to adopt a political option. Compared to other European countries, Croatia projects an entirely different image: a pronounced interest of women in politics, very similar to that of men! This partly proves the "law" that a rise in level of education, working outside home, & middle age are the catalysts for women's desire to enter the world of politics. The transition, the war, & the "legacy" of socialist ideology account for this massive public interest in politics & the much lessened gender differences. 14 Tables, 5 References. Adapted from the source document.
In a totalitarian society, the journalist profession could not grow; that is why politics still takes precedence in Croatian journalism. The mass media are controlled by politics, although journalists have remained sociopolitical activists. This has stunted the professional development of the journalistic profession, so that Croatian journalists cannot separate truth from fallacy; they equate (accurate) facts & (truthful) opinion & conceive of commentaries as the ultimate subjective journalistic form. 1 Table, 1 Figure, 11 References. Adapted from the source document.
Defining the dimensions of political culture is a precondition in the elaboration of the theory of this phenomenon & for its systematic empirical study. It has been demonstrated that Almond-Verba's concept of the dimensions of political culture, in the form of a matrix of the three orientations (cognitive, affective, & evaluative) times four political objects ("system," "input-objects," "output-objects," & "I" as an object) is not plausible. If political culture is defined as a set of beliefs about politics (which it indeed is), then it is clear that each belief at the same time contains an intricate mix of knowledge, emotions, & evaluations. This makes it difficult to determine the dimensions according to the mentioned orientations. It seems this was sensed by Almond himself in one of his later works. Using his more recent concept, we define the dimensions of political culture according to the "objects" of politics & not vice versa, according to the orientations in relation to these "objects." Thus, we have elaborated on the three fundamental dimensions according to the three fundamental objects of politics: the "system" as a universal object, the "process" as a dynamic object of politics, & the "conduct" as a manner of decision making & the outcome of governing. It has been found that each of these basic dimensions of political culture has a series of subdimensions (a total of about 25). Surely, this matrix may be added to or perhaps amended, but basically it is unassailable, since it represents a sort of map of political culture. 1 Table. Adapted from the source document.
Politics is here defined as an activity & an area of human life that concerns power & its exercise. Though power by itself is morally neutral, it often serves as a means of enslaving other people & as such is a moral challenge for Christianity. Christianity does not give precedence to a certain political philosophy nor does it proscribe a certain form of government. However, the Christian understanding of love is a source from which many principles that serve as Christians' guidelines in politics spring: restraint, patience, readiness to compromise, recognition of one's mistakes, not yielding to hate. Christianity equally opposes anational cosmopolitanism & xenophobic nationalism & is in favor of patriotism & altruism as complementary virtues. In conclusion, the author deals with the harrowing political heritage & stresses the importance of a catharsis that should facilitate the transition to a democratic society & politics. Adapted from the source document.
Politics is here defined as an activity & an area of human life that concerns power & its exercise. Though power by itself is morally neutral, it often serves as a means of enslaving other people & as such is a moral challenge for Christianity. Christianity does not give precedence to a certain political philosophy nor does it proscribe a certain form of government. However, the Christian understanding of love is a source from which many principles that serve as Christians' guidelines in politics spring: restraint, patience, readiness to compromise, recognition of one's mistakes, not yielding to hate. Christianity equally opposes anational cosmopolitanism & xenophobic nationalism & is in favor of patriotism & altruism as complementary virtues. In conclusion, the author deals with the harrowing political heritage & stresses the importance of a catharsis that should facilitate the transition to a democratic society & politics. Adapted from the source document.
Philosophy of politics is currently going through an extremely grave crisis. The crisis of the political is apparent everywhere. Political interpretation in the conditions of the contemporary age is seriously shaken. This in turn brings into question the segment of society which is an essential part of the cultural identity of the West. One might say that, throughout the 20th century, no one inquired into the position of politics as thoroughly as Hannah Arendt. Her major contribution had to do with understanding the relation between philosophy and the application of its principles in politics, and her basic estimation was that the application of principles of philosophical thought on politics had devastating consequences. Although philosophy as metaphysics, since Plato and Hegel, contributed greatly to consideration of the political, Hannah Arendt was nonetheless of the opinion that the original sense of the political was lost in such philosophy and that the application of principles of philosophical thought on politics caused the political to be forgotten. The text provides a brief outline of Plato's perception of the relation between philosophy and politics, postulating the philosophical ideal that the veritable political community (polis) must be measured according to philosophical thought, and on the basis of principles of constitution of thought itself. On the other hand, Aristotle calls upon the ethos of the existing polis, but he always analyses the political under the primacy of philosophical principles. Arendt thus deems that Aristotle also considers the relevant knowledge of the political to be philosophical. She points out that political philosophy always discriminated against opinion and variety, and consequently also against the political as such. Aristotle and Kant are partly excluded from this judgment. Since the political categories created in the philosophy of politics determine our understanding of politics to this day, Arendt subjects them to criticism. Her different understanding of the political is manifest in her analyses of the fundamental political categories (government, power, force, authority, freedom), which can be adequately grasped only on the basis of relations between people, and not of some substantial and unquestionable domain. Adapted from the source document.
