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Political Philosophy
A discipline that is concerned with the ethical and moral standards of states, societies, and individuals. Scholarly debate in this discipline evaluates the facts about social organization in a society, particularly government. There are thus two distinctive aspects of political philosophy: (1) the ethically normative aspect and (2) the more descriptive-explanatory aspect. Within its normative concerns, we find themes such as justice, community, and political responsibility. Some of the questions scholars confront are the following: What features does a good government have? Should citizens have the right to oust their government? If so, which methods should be used? What should be the relation ship between the individual and society? When should the government intervene in the lives of its citizens?
Among the founding fathers of Western ...