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The author analyzes the symbolism of the concepts such as stick, rod, club & birch in the metaphorical political terminology. The author shows that these symbols are present not only in the language of Western political philosophy but also in non-Western cultures, though their connotations vary. They are reminiscent of a phallus, a warrior's spear & arrow, a cudgel that a master uses on his disobedient slaves & family members, a shepherd's staff for managing his herd, & the accoutrements used both in black & white magic. Adapted from the source document.

The author shows how Fichte's concept of the nation, although modern, originates in a long philosophical tradition that postulates the importance of the community above that of the individual. Fichte's original philosophy of humanity, inspired by enlightenment & especially Kant, he later transferred to the abstract ethical unit of nation. In it the concept of humanity (later 'nation') is the most general community toward which the individual aspires to become a member because of his longing for the absolute. The general understanding of nations transforms into Fichte's later philosophical hypostasis of the German nation. According to Fichte, only the German nation, as a community tied by a "living language" has general human importance & a world historical mission to be accomplished in the future. The German nation, however, must become a dynamic unit through elevating its people above political & social divisions. This occurs through the education of individuals for love of the nation, based on "true" philosophy (Fichte's philosophical teachings). The author concludes that the concept of a nation in Fichte's later works (in which the relationship between the individual & the state is an educational dictatorship & the complete destruction & individuality) creates a fertile ground for totalitarian, nationalistic ideology. 27 References. Adapted from the source document.

This article attempts to show the beginnings of Croatian political science. The author considers the 16th-century practical philosophy & political work of Croatian political historians Ivan Polikarp Severitan, Franjo Petric, & Nikola Vitov Gucetic. In spite of the fact that Croatian political philosophy is considerably more diverse in this century, these authors were chosen because their work is representative of the whole, & is quite significant in the development of political science. All wrote about politics & discussed political themes -- especially the creation & function of the political community, government, & authority -- within the parameters long since established by Aristotle. Except for their nationality & ties to the region, the three authors were concerned with actual problems of their era, & were included in political discussions, ie, the identification of sovereignty & postulates upon which political communities are formed. They reaffirmed Greek principles of creation of the state on the basis of unity of ethics, policy, & other attributes. Through these authors, active in different times of the 16th century, we can see a progression in political philosophy -- from a close tie to scholastics to politics as a practical art that adapts to opportunities & conditions. Adapted from the source document.

The author claims that the concept of the separation of powers was known to writers of antiquity such as Thucydides, Plato, Aristotle, Polybius, & Cicero, who dealt with the question of the balance of power or the balance of different forms of government. In the modern age, liberal thinkers such as Montesquieu, Locke, Madison, & Hamilton postulated the principle of the tension between the opposing functions of the state as the foundation of a liberal & democratic constitutional system. The principle of separation or division of power has maintained its significance in the 20th-century democracies, despite the relativization of the role of the national state through the interdependence of the global society as well as the development of other principles & mechanisms of curtailing the power of the state (political parties, human rights, the autonomy of the mass media & of various social sectors). The author asserts that the principle of the separation of power is functioning today primarily as a form of labor division among various government institutions; this division gives rise to a miscellany of the participants' opinions & preferences. Adapted from the source document.

The impact of the thought of political scientist/philosopher John Rawls on Croatian political science in general, & the department of political science at the U of Zagreb in particular, is commemorated with this overview of the significance of Rawls's writings on justice, tolerance, & the spirit of pluralism as part of a conference held at the university on 7-8 Mar 2003. The effect of Rawls's Theory of Justice on Croatian political philosophy is as great as that of Hobbes's Leviathan & Rousseau's Social Contract. Rawls is commended for his wisdom & call for tolerance, a value in short supply both in recent Eastern European & American history. A. Siegel

The author emphasizes the necessity of linking thought & action in order to avoid the dangers of calamitous abstractions of sheer philosophy & sheer politics. Only a tension between philosophy & politics can be fruitful both for philosophy & politics. Jaspers's political writings, the author thinks, are not an appendage of philosophy but its component part. Philosophy is political in itself because it exists & functions solely in freedom. Nevertheless, Jaspers is not an acolyte of Plato's thesis about rulers-philosophers but of Kant's demand that philosophers have the right to speak in public. A man as a man is not only a political but also a philosophical being whose freedom depends on the encounter of philosophy & politics. This does not mean to neglect the fact that philosophers & politicians are faced with a different set of tasks. Adapted from the source document.

The text begins with Richard Rorty's assessment that Kuhn's Structure of Scientific Revolutions, along with Rawls's A Theory of Justice, is the most important philosophical book written in the English language in the twentieth century. The author endorses this assessment, for it is impossible to think of a work in the fields of philosophy or scientific history which had such a dramatic agitating & inspiring impact on the public for which it was originally not intended. Namely, although Kuhn addressed in his work primarily philosophers & scientists engaged with natural sciences, the work was a source of major & fruitful discussion which involved, or could not be overseen by, anthropologists, sociologists, culturologists, political scientists, philosophers of morality, linguists, legal experts & many others. The author puts forward some of Kuhn's epistemological ideas which were creatively elaborated, reworked & recontextualized by non-epistemologists. The text is divided in two parts. In the first part, the author briefly sketches Kuhn's key concepts expounded in Structure... (paradigm, normal science, revolution). In the second part, he sets forth Richard Bernstein's interpretation of Kuhn's epistemology. The author opts for this interpretation because Bernstein, in his judgment, demonstrated better than any other philosopher that precisely the concept of incommensurability is to be given credit for Kuhn's enormous influence even beyond the boundaries of philosophy & scientific history. Together with Bernstein, the author concludes that incommensurability becomes a first-rate category of political thought due to the fact that it stresses in a conceptually adequate & analytically rigorous fashion the phenomenon of mutual understanding which overrides the imperative of choosing some unique superior scientific theory. Adapted from the source document.

The author analyzes the concept of neoclassicism in contemporary political philosophy. The study begins with a description of contemporary neoclassical developments & continues with a precise delineation of Plato's & Aristotle's philosophy of politics. In the end, the author concludes that the antiquity-inspired philosophy of politics today has the corrective function to steer liberal society towards community. Adapted from the source document.

In the wake of the 'Kant revival,' which has spawned a plethora of works on his philosophy by its contemporary interpreters & advocates such as Herbert Schnadelbach, Hans Lenk, Konrad Cramer, Wilhelm Vossenkuhl, Volker Gerhardt, Karl-Otto Apel, Otfried Hoffe & others (whose studies were published this year under the title of Kant in der Diskussion der Moderne), the author tries to prove, by means of an analysis of Kant's treatise Uber den Gemeinspruch: Das mag in der Theorie richtig sein, taugt aber nicht fur die Praxis, that not only did Kant in his later works draft & expound the program of a practical philosophy of morality & right, politics, & history, but also that in the last three chapters of this work, this philosophy evolves into a modern liberal theory of morality, state law, & international or "international civil" law built around the central principle of Kant's practical philosophy: "Was aus Vernunftgrunden fur die Theorie gilt, das gilt auch fur die Praxis.". 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.

The author writes about Jefferson's political philosophy. There is no text by Jefferson that would set out a certain political issue. There are numerous texts of his, written in the course of fifty years, but a collage of them would not amount to a political theory or a doctrine. Jefferson was not interested in theoretical but solely in technical & practical issues. This makes him a typical 18th-century lawyer of the common law vein. Common law of that time was an amateur area, devoid of any technical or professional expertise & part of general moral principles. Jefferson was deft at formulating the widely held ideas of his time, embracing some century-old well-known political truths by Grotius, Milton, Locke, & Burlamaqui. The author suggests that Jefferson was first & foremost a statesman, & his judgments were politically tainted. Nevertheless, he was the most educated statesman ever among American presidents. Adapted from the source document.

The author looks into the meaning of law in Kant's practical philosophy for the constitution of a political community. First, he defines the specific character of modern knowledge by referring to Heidegger & Fink & how this knowledge is reflected in Kant's philosophy of morality & law. Then he goes on to define the external legislation & list its applications. After the author has defined Kant's concept of law, he shows how freedom & its security -- not happiness, well-being, or interest -- are central to Kant's political philosophy. Freedom becomes the foundation of all activities & laws, & freedom can only be based on law & not morality. Thus, individual freedom is possible solely within a law-abiding community. Adapted from the source document.

The author describes Thomas Jefferson's life from his birth to his death. The paper focuses on his place & role in the creation & the formation of the US & the hardships accompanying that process. Multiple links of Thomas Jefferson with the European political scene of his time are depicted. Adapted from the source document.