Notes on "A History of Political Theory" by George Holland Sabine

For the next few months, I will be recording here notes made in grad school on A History of Political Theory by George Holland Sabine. 

Theory of the City-State

I. City State - Greek political theory
  A. Small territory dominated by single city (the polis) of up to 300 thousand
  B. Three politically & legally distinct classes
       1. Not great amount of leisure due to narrow economic margin
       2. Lower standard of consumption
       3. At the bottom, slaves
       4. Next resident foreigner (metic) and freemen, but neither citizens
       5. Citizens were members of the polis and entitled to take part in its political life
 C. Citizenship
       1. Membership -- some minimum share of participation in public business
       2. Extent of membership shared based on the degree of democracy that prevailed
 D. Political Problem "to discover what place each kind or class of men merited in a
      wholesome society so constituted that all the significant sorts of social work could go
      on."
 E. Political Institutions of Athens
       1. Assembly (Ecclesia) -- male citizens of 20 years, meeting 10+ times a year
       2. Magistrates -- boards of ten from ten tribes, not re-electable
       3. Body of citizens of cross-section from whole could act for all for short periods
       4. Courts of large popular juries
       5. Council of Fine Hundred -- executive/steering committee of the Assembly
       6. Demes (wards) -- units of local government, hereditary membership.  Presented
           candidates to fill bodies of the central government
       7. Filling of office from panel (by lot) elected by the demes in rough proportion to
           their size. (Important democratic feature as seen by Greeks as lot equalized chances
           to hold office.)
       8. Ten generals (strategoi) chosen by direct election, re-electable. (Also served as
           military governor when needed.)
 F. Assembly
       1. Council of 500 acted as executive
       2. The 500 divided into ten groups of 50 (based on tribe plus one each from the nine
           other tribes) which rotated actual business for 1/10 of term
       3. President (epistates) chosen by lot from the 50 for only one day (and only once in
           lifetime)
 G. Courts (the Heliaia)
       1. Judicial power in civil or criminal cases
       2. Chosen by lot from 6000 elected each year from demes
       3. Range in size from 201-501
       4. Not appealable since courts acted in name of the whole people
       5. Had authority over magistrates (chosen by lot) who performed administrative
           duties and were examined before taking office, subject to review and audited at
           end of term for use of public funds by the courts
       6. Court could judge a law & quash it as it was equal to the Assembly in both being
           identical to the people
 H. Political ideas/ideals (Athenian
       1. Polis was the highest interest to which men could devote themselves.
       2. Constitution was "mode of life" not a legal structure.
       3. All should, & most desired, to participate.
       4. All citizens should have equal opportunity to hold office.
       5. All should blend to achieve a harmonious common life, the highest goal & chief
           joy of every citizen.
       6. Rights belonged to his station, not attributes of the individual person.
       7. Obligations not forced by state but flow from need to realize his own potentialities.
       8. Freedom & respect for law were basic values.
       9. Belief in discussion as the best way to come to public decision.
       10. "The processes of government are the processes of impartial law which is binding
           because it is right."

Next week:  Political Thought before Plato

A New Patriotism

The weather has been glorious these past two days. Went biking in Virgina this morning on the W&OD. On the way back, came to a stop sign on the trail where it crosses a road. A guy in a pickup, wearing a cowboy hat and playing country music on his radio, stopped, when he didn't have to, to let me go by without stopping on my bike. It was an act of kindness. Made me feel good and to realize how much we are missing when we don't try to treat each other with kindness and tolerance. What I think we have been missing for a long time now is the sense of being citizens, fellow citizens, comrades in a great adventure to see if government by the people, for the people and of the people can rise to the challenges that face us. We need a new form of patriotism in which we all recognize that whatever our different views, we are all trying together to get it right. This new patriotism - maybe just good, old fashioned civility - should start with recognizing each other as fellow citizens of this great country founded on the notion that freedom and democracy works better. Friendly kindness and mutual tolerance and understanding is patriotic and good for us.