State

1. CH – 1 CONCEPT OF STATE
BY. Dr. REKHA SINGH

3. EVOLUTION OF SOCIETY/ SOCIETAL INSTITUTION

4. EMERGENCE OF STATE FROM SOCIETY
STATE
"Socially, politically organised".
Society is an association of human
beings.
Lives a collective life and form social relations
to fulfill their needs.

5. Emergence of the State from Society

6. What is a state?
• A state is a centralized political organization that imposes and enforces rules over
a population within a territory. There is no undisputed definition of a state.
•

8. EVOLUTION OF SOCIETY/ SOCIETAL INSTITUTION
Whole web of
social
relationship
Kinship
affinity
Territorial
affinity
Religious
affinity
Language
affinity

11. ELEMENTS OF A STATE
ELEMENTS OF
STATE
POPULATION
TERRITORY
GOVERNMENT
SOVEREIGNTY

14. THEORIES ON THE
ORIGIN OF STATE
THEORY OF KINSHIP
PATRIARCHAL THEORY
MATRIARCHAL THEORY
DIVINE THEORY
SOCIAL CONTRACT
THEORY

16. THEORY OF KINSHIP
• Origin of kinship theory is based on Sociological facts.
• Kinship is one of the universals in human society and therefore plays an important
role in both the regulation of behavior and the formation of social groups.
• Kinship systems depend on the social recognition and cultural implementation of
relationships derived from descent and marriage and normally involve a set of
kinship terms and an associated set of behavioral patterns and attitudes which,
together, make up a systematic whole
• “Kinship is one of the most important organizing components of society. ... This social
institution ties individuals and groups together and establishes a relationship among
them.“
• The blood relationship and kinship brought the members of the family together and
all accepted the authority of the head of the family. The name of the common
ancestor was the symbol of kinship.
• Kinship created a society and society created a State, to maintain family disciple,
rules regulation and command gave origin to the government.

18. PATRIARCHAL THEORY
• According to this, in the origin of state the most important role was played by the
eldest male descendant of the family.
• Sir Henry Maine(the spirit of laws)- State developed out of the family as legal
system developed out of the unrestrained autocracy of the family head(patria
potestas)
• Patria Potestas- The eldest male parent of the family had the final and
unqualified authority over the family and the household.
• He expanded the family ties by polygamy and thus created the bondage among
the individuals on the basis of Kinship to form a State.
• The multiplication and bonding among the families formed villages and extension
of villages formed tribe or clan,.
• Clan ultimately form a state and to regulate the state rules and regulation
required which developed a government.

19. MATRIARCHAL THEORY
• This theory finds support from political thinkers like Mc. Lennan and Edward
Jenks who thought that - patriarchal societies were non-existent in primitive ages.
• Polyandry (where a woman had many husbands) was the highest authority of the
household Mc. Lennan described mater familias (mother as the head of family) as
the martiapotestas (mother as the final authority) in matters of possession and
disposal of property of the family.
• Edward Jenks illustrates this process from his studies of primitive tribes in
Australia. The Australian tribes were organized in some sort of tribes known as
totem group- not organized on the basis of kinship but through a common symbol
like a tree, or an animal.
• Men of one totem group would marry all the women of their generation
belonging to another totem group. Thus the system of marriage included
polygamy as also polyandry.
• Criticism- The authority to run a state is conferred on the ruler not because of his
seniority, but on account of his status and competence.

20. DIVINE THEORY
• State is established and run by god or some super human power or the king as his
agent and religious scriptures.
• As God created the animals, plants, trees, rivers, hills and other inanimate
objects, the God also created the state for peace, protection and preservation of
creatures on this earth.
• This theory found support from political thinkers such as James and Sir Robert
Filmer.
• This theory implies individuals to obey and support some definite ruler under the
high moral status equivalent to God.
• This theory adds moral character to state function.
• Different faiths also consider the origin of political authority had divine sanction.

21. SOCIAL CONTRACT THEORY – THOMAS HOBBES
• The Social Contract Theory traces the existence of the State to the mutual
agreement and mutual consent of the people, to form a State.
• Thomas Hobbes and John Locke, both from England, and Jeans Jacques Rousseau
from France, are three political philosophers who propounded this theory.
• They assumed that, to escape from the pre - political condition of society,
individuals entered into a social contract.
• Hobbes explains that before the emergence of civil state humans were in the state
of nature where they were continuously struggling with the nature for their
survival in terms of right to life, liberty, property so individuals entered into
contract to establish a state.
• People gave authorized their rights of governing themselves to the sovereign which
came into being as social contract.
• Hobbes believes that without sovereign power law, order, peace and security
could not be maintained in the society.

23. SOCIAL CONTRACT THEORY - SIR JOHN LOCKE
• Locke begins by describing the state of nature, a picture much more stable than Thomas
Hobbes' state of "war of every man against every man," and argues that all men are created
equal in the state of nature by God.
• The law of nature regulates the life of the people in the state of nature. It ensures the
individual enjoy the right to life, liberty and property.
• The life of the people in the state of nature was happy , peaceful but inconvenient as there
was no agency to interpret natural laws and enforce natural rights of the people in the state
of nature.
• The liberty of the individual in not limited by human law, yet it is limited by the law of nature
and dictates the reason.
• Therefore people entered into two contracts such as –
a) Social Contract – It was among the people and led to formation of civil society.
b) Governmental – It took place between the people and the government for the
development of system of law.

25. SOCIAL CONTRACT THEORY - JEAN JAQUES ROUSSEAU
• ‘The general will of the people’ led to the creation of the institution called state.
• He described ‘social contract’ the state of nature as a state of bliss ad happiness.
• With the passage of time number of changes came in the society (increase in population,
unequal di0stribution of wealth and power) life became intolerable. Peace and happiness
disappeared.
• To avoid such conflicts, human beings entered into social contract among themselves.
• By such social contract, the individual surrendered all his rights to the general will in
which individuals themselves were part even after transferring their rights.
• Individuals were governed by a new authority in the name of general will (Common
good) of the people, in the form of direct democracy.
• Rousseaue regarded -The general will of the people as Sovereign. The popular
sovereignty is in continuous exercise and there is no scope of revolt in his theory.

27. EFFECTS OF THE SOCIAL CONTRACT

29. CRITICISM OF SOCIAL CONTRACT THEORY
• This theory was criticized on certain points –
a) The people who have lack of experience may not come
together on certain political authority and civil rights at any
particular point of time nor enter into an agreement to
start a collectivized civil life.
b) If the existence of the state is based on an agreement of
the members of the society, they may cancel the
agreement at any point of time and accordance to the self
interest of the members of the society they may change it.
In that case the state will always remain under the
destabilization.

30. ELEMENTS OF A STATE
POPULATION –
• It is the people who make the State. Population is
an essential element of the state… They are the
ones who create the state, maintains the
resources, live on land and forms the government..
Greek thinkers were of the view that the
population size should not be too big nor too
small.
• Plato in his book “The Laws” suggested the ideal
number should be 5040 for constituting an ideal
state.
• Stephen Leacock suggested that the population
number must be sufficient to maintain state
organization.
• On the nature of population it may be
homogenous or heterogeneous in respect of race,
religion, language ,culture.
TERRITORY
• There can be no state without fixed territory.
People needs territory to live and organize
themselves. The territory of the state includes
Land ,Air ,Water.
• Territory is a geographical area that is owned and
controlled by a government or country to exercise
state sovereignty.
• The territorial jurisdiction of a state extends not
only over the land but also over rivers, lakes,
mountain, sea, sub soil and aerial space also.
• Nomads and gypsies can have no state as they lead
a wandering life.
• A fixed territory is not essential to the existence of
a state provided that there is an acceptable degree
of characterized as ‘consistency’ in the nature of
the territory and of its population.

31. ELEMENTS OF A STATE
GOVERNMENT-
• Population and Territory cannot form a state.
The people of the state are subjected to the
control of government
• It is a political and administrative organ of a
state. The state operates through the
government.
• It has major three organs – Legislature,
Executive and Judiciary. It also have some
internal bodies to maintain administration like
local government.
• Locke has held that government was simply a
trust, an agent entrusted with respecting the
natural rights of the people.
• Rousseau has defined government as ‘an
intermediate body established between the
subjects and the sovereign for their mutual
communication and charged with the execution
of the laws and preservation of liberty both civil
and political.
• SOVEREIGNTY
• It is the most crucial factor that distinguishes a
state from other forms of human organization.
• There can be no state in the absence of
sovereignty
• Sovereignty means the original , supreme and
unlimited power of the state to impose its will
upon all persons, associations and things within its
jurisdiction.
• Sovereignty is of two types – Internal and External
sovereignty.
• Internal sovereignty means the state is supreme in
all internal matters.
• External Sovereignty means a state must be free
from foreign control.
• International Recognition is also considered as an
essential element of the state. It means the
recognition of the sovereignty of the state over a
given territory and population by other state.

32. ROLE OF A STATE
• There is no perfect or fixed form of a state. It is just an instrument of social man.
• Famous political thinker Maclver has referred to different notions of the state as a class organization, legal
institution, mutual insurance agency, unnecessary evil, necessary evil, the march of God on Earth, welfare
system, power system, state as an organization.
• Andrew Heywood in his book ‘Politics’ has classified the role of a state based on it’s functions and
responsibilities. Classification of the state are –
a) Minimal State - A state with the least possible amount of powers. A government whose intervention in
the economy is just sufficient to sustain organized economic activity. The responsibilities
of a minimal state would include provision of policing, a judiciary, and defence of the
nation. John Locke theory- ’State acts as a night watchman’ whose services are called
upon when orderly existence is threatened.
b) Developmental States- Developmental state is characterized by having strong state intervention, as well as
extensive regulation and planning. hey include capitalist countries, such as Germany,
Japan, Russia, South Korea, and Taiwan, and socialist countries, such as China, the
former Soviet Union, and North Korea. The developmental state gives priority to
economic growth rather than political reform. It is of strong ambition to develop
economy; Private enterprise and business are under the state's guidance.

33. ROLE OF A STATE
• Social Democratic States - It is a specific type of welfare state and policy regime described as being universalist, supportive of
collective bargaining, and more supportive of public provision of welfare. It is political movement advocating a gradual and peaceful
transition from capitalism to socialism by democratic means. A democratic welfare state that incorporates both capitalist and socialist
practices.
• Collectivized states - The state has complete control over the resources. It make laws to control private property of their citizens.
The state takes care of the economic needs of the citizens for e.g Food ,shelter, employment.
• Totalitarian States - Totalitarianism is a form of government and a political system that prohibits all opposition parties, outlaws
individual and group opposition to the state and its claims, and exercises an extremely high degree of control and regulation over
public and private life. Characteristics of Totalitarian states are -
a) Elaborate guiding ideology.
b) Single mass party, typically led by a dictator.
C)System of terror, using such instruments as violence and secret police.
d)Monopoly on weapons.
e)Monopoly on the means of communication.
f)Central direction and control of the economy through state planning.
• Modern Welfare State - The government is responsible for the individual and social welfare of its citizens. Most modern countries
have programs that are reflective of a welfare state, such state include the maintenance of law and order, establishment of justice,
maintenance of public health and sanitation, transport , communication system and other welfare schemes.