The question ‘what is the state’ must remain separate from other questions that may be relevant but could blur the picture
The question ‘what is the state’ must remain separate from other questions that may be relevant but could blur the picture
The question ‘what is the state’ (its definition) must remain separate from other questions that may be relevant but could blur the picture, such as ‘what is the state for?’ or ‘how does a state develop?’, or the quintessential questions of ‘how is it best to govern a state?’ and ‘what is the optimal type of government?’ (see also §00.02.10). All these are related, and extremely important, questions, but they are not the same as the first one. They have been used either to assist in the definition of the state (‘if we understand what it is for then we can understand what it really is’) or as substitutes for a definition from a pragmatic point of view (‘it is fine if we cannot define it; it is not necessary because we all know what it means, so let us focus on the questions that really matter, such as what it is for or what is the best political system’). Nevertheless, these approaches leave the matter wanting: only once we have provided a satisfactory definition of the state will we be able to provide adequate answers to (or, at least, shed new light on) questions regarding what the state is for or how it is best governed.
Navigate: ← §07.00.09.00 · Corpus · §07.00.11.00 →