Definition of Political Science

The Politic science is a social discipline which focuses on the theoretical and practical study of politics, of political systems, such as monarchy, oligarchy, democracy, among others and of political conduct.

Discipline that studies politics theoretically and practically

It should be noted that it is a science that is in constant interrelation with other sciences such as:economy, the story, the sociology, among other.

Basically what political science does is observe various facts of political reality and then issue general principles of activity in this sense.

If we had to go back to the origins of him, then, we should place ourselves at the very appearance of man, since man himself is a political animal, therefore both from the most remote antiquity we can find references to the subject, despite clearly not existing then and as it is today, as a science formal.

Nicolás Machiavelli, pioneer and father of politics

Although there is no single position that allows us to unanimously indicate the beginning of science, many scholars of the subject point out

the work of the Italian philosopher and politician Nicholas Machiavelli, in the fifteenth century, in full Renaissance, as its formal beginning.

Even more, his treatise on politics, The Prince, widely disseminated since the 15th century and of notable influence to this day, describes different models of state according to the origin of authority.

Likewise, it deals with defining the qualities that a prince must have in order to rule with authority.

Then, Machiavelli, would lay the cornerstone of the formality of science, and then over the decades and centuries, the Political science evolved as and thanks to the contribution of various thinkers who analyzed the fundamental changes in those time.

And at present the activity of this science is more than anything focused on the analysis of the exercise of power, the administration and management of governments, the regime of political parties and the electoral process.

Dictatorship versus democracy, one of the great topics of study of this science

In ancient times there was a close link between political power and religion, being generally concentrated and held by the same hands, Although today that relationship continues to be close in many cases, what has changed is the position of religion, being more of a social actor that is It deals with intervening at times when society demands it as a political interlocutor, but not from the top of power, making decisions such as yesteryear.

The absolute monarchies that exercised totalitarian and dictatorial regimes were those that held political and religious power.

The arrival of democracy, in more recent times, allowed sovereignty to fall on the people who have the responsibility and power to elect their political representatives through suffrage.

Democracy is undoubtedly the most plural system of government that exists since it admits the diversity and plurality of colors and political opinions on the different issues that affect society.

The system of political parties that operates in democracy allows each of these to express in a way free your proposals so that if necessary, citizens can choose the one that best suits their ideals.

On the opposite side will be the dictatorship, the political organization in which the authority has not been elected through the vote or by any other institutional mechanism endorsed by the regulations.

They are generally the result of the violation of some rule that paves them access to power.

The dictatorship is sustained by a power that is exercised in fact, usually accompanied by coercion and violence against opponents and the curtailment of individual freedoms.

Now, there are many dictatorships that have come to power in a constitutional way but then turned to an exercise of authoritarian power.

State violence is the worst expression that dictatorships usually show to perpetrate power.

They do not care about the dire consequences of exercising authority in an authoritarian way and are ruthless against those who challenge their authority.

Unfortunately in the world there have been and are emblematic and very painful examples of dictatorships, such as the Nazism.

Topics in Political Science