Jagannath University

Dept. of Sociology

Course Name:
Political Science (1204)

Assignment Topic:
Relation between Political Science and Sociology
Importance of Political Science in Sociology
Relation Between Liberty, Equality and Law

Submitted By: Submitted To:

Mehazabin Zaman Sarkar Md. Ershadul Islam
ID: B190404082 Assistant professor
st nd
BSS Honors 1 year, 2 Semester Dept. of Sociology
Session: 2019-2020 Jagannath University
Batch: 15th
Submission Date: 15 -12-2020
 CONTENTS

Topic-1: Relation between Political Science And Sociology

 Briefing about political science and sociology

 Similarities between political science and sociology
 Differences between political science and sociology
 Conclusion

Topic:2: Importance of Political Science In Sociology

 Introduction
 Contribution of political science in sociology
 Conclusion

Topic 3: Relation Between Liberty, Equality and Law

 Deffination of Liberty, Equality and Law

 Relation between Liberty and Equality
1. Introduction
2. Similarities between Liberty and Equality
3. Differences between Liberty and Equality
4. Conclusion
  Relation between Liberty and Law
1. Introduction
2. Relation of Liberty and Equality
3. Conclusion

 Relation between Law and Equality

1. Introduction
2. Relation of law & equality
3. Conclusion

Topic-1: Relation between Political Science And Sociology.

 Political Science is concerned with the political aspect of this social man and his
interaction with the various dimensions of his social life, be it economical, social,
psychological, sociological and historical. Aristotle has called Political Science ,The
Master Science‟ as it deals with human beings who is a social being having many
dimensions; historical, political, economical, psychological, sociological etc.
Political science as an academic discipline is its emphasis on government and
power. However, the study of government and power is not confined to political
science: it naturally permeates into other social sciences and hence its association
with the other social sciences and the growth of interdisciplinary study in social
sciences. Political science borrowed many theories and concepts, methods and
techniques from other social sciences. For example decision making theory from
organizational field, structural functional approach from sociology and
anthropology, action theory from sociology, system analysis from communication
sciences etc. Garris, the famous and German author is of the opinion that
political science deals with the origin development purpose and all political
problems of the state.

sociology is a systematic approach to thinking about, studying, and understanding

society, human social behavior, and social groups. According to Gettell, “
sociology is a general social science,’’ August comte, the founding father of
sociology define sociology as the science of social phenomena, “subject to natural
and invariable laws, the discovery of which is the object of investigation.
Political science and sociology are closely related. The following section deals with
the relation of political science with sociology.
 SIMILARITIES BETWEEN SOCIOLOGY AND POLITICAL SCIENCE

1. Sociology and Political Science both of them help each other in studying
activities of man, living in society. Sociology is the science which deals with
human beings and their social relationship. Political science deals with the
political activities of men. Political activities influences and is influenced by
the social life of men.

2. Political science studies state, government and power mostly while

sociology provides sociological background to the forms of government, the
nature of governmental organs, the laws and sphere of the state activities
as determined by the social processes.

3. As political science deals with state sociology also studies state as one of
the human association. The special study of the political life of society is
very important for the complete study of the society as a whole. The state,
which is the center of political science in its early stage, was more of a
social than political institution.

4. Political science depends upon sociology and sociology provides material to

political science. The laws which are formed by the government are based
on the social customs, traditions, mores, norms, etc. of the society.

According to Morris Ginsberg ,"Historically sociology has its main rules in

political and philosophy of history. Without sociological background, the study of
political science will be incomplete. But also sociology depends on political
science for its conclusion. The special study of political life of the society is very
important for the complete study of the society as a whole. Sociology and political
science are so closely and deeply related to each other that one becomes
meaningless without the other.
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SOCIOLOGY AND POLITICAL SCIENCE
1. Sociology is the science of political science; on the other hand, it is the science
of state and government. Sociology studies society as a whole and man as a social
being where as political science deals with a particular aspect of society, which is
regarded as a politically organized unit. Therefore, political science is a more
specialized science than sociology.

2. Sociology studies man as fundamentally a social animal whereas political

science studies man as a political animal.

3. Sociology is the general science and is relatively younger but political science is
special and is older than sociology.

4. The approach of sociology is different than that of political science. Sociology is

the study of social groups within society, while political science is the study of
government-derived power.

5. Sociology has wider scope than that of political science. Sociology deals with
social, political, economic, cultural and other aspects of society and studies will be
the social institutions such as family, marriage, religion, kinship, caste and so on.
But political science deals with political aspect and studies a specific political
institution like state and government only. Thus, sociology is regarded as a
general science while political science is viewed as a specialized social science.

6. Sociology studies forms of associations and institutions where as political

science deals with the state and government which are known as specific forms of
association. That is why professor Garner remarks "Political science is concerned
with only human form association such as state, sociology deals with all forms
of association."
7. Sociology studies all kinds of social relationship in a general way. But political
science studies only the political aspect of social relationship in a particular way.

8. Sociology studies both organized and disorganized societies. But political

science studies only the politically organized societies.

9. Sociology deals with both formal as well as informal relations of the society,
which are based on customs, traditions, folkways, mores, norms etc. But political
science deals only with formal relations based on laws and order of the state.

10. Sociology is the study of all means of social control. Political science, on the
other hand, is the study of only government-recognized means of control.

11. Political Science is an old concept, coined during the ancient Greek era by
Aristotle. Sociology is a much newer concept invented by French essayist
Emmanuel-Joseph Sieyes and reinvented by Auguste Comte.

12. Political Science is a smaller and narrower study and comes under Sociology;
while Sociology is a broader study and encompasses many branches under it.

13. Political Science is concerned with the functioning, theory and analysis of
political and governing systems in a society. Sociology takes into account all
criteria for the basis of studying humankind, to study its behavior and functioning
in a community.

14. Political science is a purely political based study based on historical and civic
perspectives while studies of Sociology are done in social, political and even
psychological manner.
15. Sociology is the fundamental social science, which studies man’s social life as
a whole and attempts to discover the facts and the laws of life as a whole. Political
science, on the other hand, is concerned with the political life of a man, which is
one part of his total life.

F.H. Gidding says "To teach the theory of the state to men who have not learn
the first principle of sociology is like teaching astronomy or thermodynamics to
men who have not learnt Newton's laws of Motion". Despite the fact the two
social sciences draw heavily from each other there are basic differences between
the two. Whereas sociology studies society as a whole and human beings as a part
of it political science deals with politically organized unit of society.

Though Political Science and Sociology are distinct in their approach yet they are
contributory in some respects. One is the complement of the other. It is true that
their problems are quite different and their scope is in no way the same, yet there
is a close relation between two social sciences. Sociology derives from Political
Science the facts about the organization and functions of the state and Political
Science drives from sociology the knowledge of the origin of political authority
and laws which control society. In the words of Dr. Garner,” the political
scientist, therefore, ought to be at the same time a sociologist and vice-versa.”

Topic:2 Importance of Political Science In Sociology

Political science is the study of governments and political institutions. The study of
the processes, principles, and structure of government and
of political institutions. According to Paul Janet, “Political science is the part of
social science with treats of the foundations of the state and the principles of
government.”

Political Science, on the other hand, deals with the study of human political
behavior in society. Since political and social behavior of man cannot be
separated, there is a close relation between Political Science and Sociology
According to Prof. Catlin, “Political Science and Sociology are inseparable and in
fact these are two sides of the same picture.”

Sociology is the mother of all social sciences. It is closely related to other social
sciences. Sociology is the science of society & social relations. It deals with the
origin, evolution, organization, purpose, ends and nature of the society. Park
regards sociology As the science of collective behavior. Because society is the
oldest organization of human beings, Sociology is also the oldest social science. In
the words of Ward, “Sociology is the science of society or of social phenomena.”

As we live in the society and society is intimately related with state and
government, they are connected with one another; we have to study political
science in sociology so that we get information about the state, the activities of
state and government and its relationship with society.

1. Political system is the order-maintaining system of Society:

Political System is the order-maintaining system of the society. Sociology depends
upon Political Science for knowledge of the nature and working of the Political
System.

2. Help us to built a career:

Political science is a discipline that uses. Different approaches, our courses train
you in a Number of different critical skills that will help you Succeed in a
career..Most of our courses have assignments that develop your skills in writing.
Almost all good jobs require writing skills. Other Courses develop skills in
quantitative reasoning.

3. Political Science gives knowledge about the State:

Man is not only a social animal, he is also a political one, and state is his supreme
political institution. State influences the social life and Sociology gets knowledge
about State from Political Science.

4. Sociology needs knowledge of political structures:

Government of the State, political parties, political elites, and political pressure
groups also act as agencies of social change and reforms. Sociology therefore,
needs knowledge of such structures of Politics. For this’ Sociology depends on
Political Science.

5. State tries to end Social Evils:

State through its laws always tries to end all the social evils and this way cleans
the social life. Hence sociology dependents upon Political Science.

6. State regulates Social Organizations:

All the social organizations in the state are regulated by the laws of the state. All
famous sociologists like Morris, Ginsberg, August C6mte, Ward and others
consider the study of state as a part of the study of Sociology. They always take a
keen interest in the activities of the State.
7. Politics affects social change:
Government is an agent of social change. It makes laws’ policies and
programmers for changing or eliminating all evil social customs and practices.

Accepting the close relationship between Sociology and Political Science, Giddings
in his book ‘Principles of Sociology’ writes, ‘To teach the theory of state to these
who have not learnt the first principles of Sociology is like teaching astronomy
or Thermodynamics to men who have not learnt Newton’s law of Motion.”
Studying political science in sociology is very important. The importance of
political science lies in the fact that all of us live within political systems. It helps
to understand the birth and growth of state and gives information about types of
government. It also gives information about structure and functions and helps to
plan for future activities of state and government.
 Topic 3: Relation Between Liberty, Equality and Law

LIBERTY:

The term “ liberty” has been derived from the Latin word ‘liber’ which means free
from all shackles. The Latin word ‘Liber’ denotes the absence of all restraints. It
means one can do whatever one likes, regardless of all conditions.

EQUALITY:

By equality we generally means that all man are equal and all should be entitled
to identify of treatment and income .equality is a leveling process the idea of
equality has insisted that man are politically equal, that all citizens are equally
entitled to take part in political life to exercise the franchise, to run for and hold
office. It has insisted that individuals should be equal before the law, that when
the general law confers right or imposes duties, the rights and duties shall extend
to all; or conversely that they shall not confer special privileges on particular
individuals or groups”. Professor Laski has very aptly remarked in this
connection.”Equality does not mean the identity of treatment or the sameness of
reward. If a bricklayer gets the same reward as a mathematician or a scientist, the
purpose of society will be defeated. Equality, therefore, means, first of all the
absence of social privilege. In the second place it means that adequate
opportunities are laid open to all”.

LAW:

“Where there is no law there is no freedom”, says John Locke. Therefore, the
existence of law is essential for the existence of liberty. It is the laws that protect
liberty.IN the absence of law the individual will have to seek the help of might in
order to safeguard his liberty. And there will be ”might is right”. In the absence of
laws anarchy will prevail in society and people will degenerate into primitive
savages who lived in the state of nature as described by hobbies. Professor
Willoughby has asserted that” Freedom exists only when there is retrain”. Gettell
 observes,” Liberty in any real and dependable sense is possible only if sovereignty
exists and becomes more perfect as sovereignty is more completely organized’’.
First of all law provides congenial atmosphere for the smooth running of civilized
life in society. Law punishes the criminals and defends the right and duties and
protects them. The state punishes the individual who causes harm to others and
hinders the path of others. Thirdly, constitution is the constitution is the
custodian of liberty. It is only the constitution that confines the authority of the
state and protects the fundamental rights of the people.

Relation between Liberty and Equality:

There is a close relationship between liberty and equality. We cannot even think of
one without the other. To know the relationship between the two, we must know the correct
meaning of both these terms. 

Meaning of Liberty-Liberty does not mean absence of restraints. Liberty is a congenial

atmosphere which is necessary for the development of man's personality. But a man living in
the society cannot be given liberty to do anything which is against social or state interests. 
Meaning of Equality-Equality means absence of special rights and equal chances to everyone
for his development. Prof. Laski has aptly said that equality means there should be no class
with special rights and everybody should get equal opportunities to develop.

RELATIONS BETWEEN LIBERTY AND EQUALITY Different writers have given

different views about the relationship between liberty and equality. According to some
thinkers, liberty and equality are opposite to each other and Hogg, Hayek, Friedman, Acton,
Tocqueville, Begehot, May etc are of this view. Other philosophers like Harringtion, Maitland,
Hume, Godwin, Rousseau, Arnold, Tawney, Polland, Barker etc. are of the opinion that liberty
and equality are not opposite, rather complementary to each other. 
Below we discuss both these views in detail :
 Similarities between Liberty and Equality :

Some intellectuals are of the opinion that equality and liberty are not opposite to each other
rather, they are complementary and critics who think that liberty and equality are opposite, they
do not know the real meaning of these terms. According to Prof. Pollard, "There is only one
solution of liberty, it lies in equality." Similarly in the words of Prof. R.H. Tawny, "A large measure
of equality so far from being inimical to liberty is essential to it."

If we take the correct meanings of these terms, then there is no opposition

between liberty and equality. Prof. Laski thinks, "De Tocqueville and Lord Acton misunderstood the
meanings of the term equality when they said that liberty and equality cannot exist together." If
we keep the following points in our mind, we cannot see the opposition between equality and
liberty.

1. Purpose of both is Same-The main aim of liberty and equality is to create an

atmosphere in which man can develop his over all personality. When the purpose is
same, then how there can be opposition ? According to Dr. Asirvatham, "The French
Revolutionaries were neither mad nor stupid when they made liberty, equality and
fraternity their war cry."

2. For the enjoyment of freedom, equality is Needed-In the absence of

equality, liberty cannot be enjoyed. We cannot think that a poor and a rich man can
enjoy liberty equally. This is next to impossible. The only way to enjoy liberty is to
create equality first. Pollard has rightly said, "There is only one solution of liberty, it
lies in equality."

3. For civil liberty, equality before law is a Must-Civil liberty is one which one
enjoys by being the member of the state and this liberty one can enjoy only when
there are provisions of equality before law. If this is not there, the civil liberty
becomes meaningless. Modern Political Theory (Semester-II) (G.N.D.U.)
 4. .For Political Freedom, equal opportunities are Needed-Political liberty
means man should be given equal chances to participate in the affairs of the
state. If it is not like this then political liberty becomes meaningless. Today a poor
man cannot enjoy that much liberty as a rich man enjoys. Therefore, equality is
necessary in every sphere.

5. Liberty and Equality are pillars of Democracy-Liberty and equality, both are
pillars of democracy. If there is only liberty and not equality, or vice-versa, then
democracy , will be meaningless. This shows that there is close relationship between
equality and liberty.

6. There is no value of Liberty in the absence of equality : liberty and

equality are the same conditions as viewed from different angles. They are two
sides of the same coin. If an individual is given unrestrained Liberty to do
whatever he likes he will cause harm to others there will be chaos in society if
individuals are given unrestrained Liberty.

Liberty has no significance in the absence of economic equality. Hobbes

asserted, "what good is freedom to a starving man? he cannot eat freedom or
drink it" thus it is quite clear that economic equality is essential for the existence
of political freedom .

7. In the absence of political liberty equality cannot be established :

liberty and equality are complementary to each other they are not opposed to
each other they go together liberty and equality are to be reconciled by
remembering that both are subordinate means to the end of realizing the
potentiality is of individual personality on the widest possible scale. Pollard
writes, "there is only one solution of the problem of Liberty. It lies in
equality".

Both have developed Side by Side After reading the history of equality and liberty, we come to
know that man struggled for both, equality and liberty simultaneously. The Revolutionaries of
France, demanded equality and liberty simultaneously because they were conscious that one is
meaningless without the other.

Differences between Liberty and Equality :

Some intellectuals are of the opinion that liberty and equality are opposed to each other.
When we try to establish liberty, equality gets lost. We try to bring an able and disable
person on the same level which results in withdrawing liberty of an able person. According
to the views of Lord Acton, "The passion for equality has made vain the hope of liberty."
The writers who are in favor of this view give the following points to support their
argument :

1. Nature has not created all men Equal-Some Intellectuals think that inequalities in
society are the gift of nature because nature has not created all men equal. Some
people are intelligent others dull, some are beautiful others are ugly. These
inequalities are not the creation of men but are natural. Against the natural principle,
we try to bring equality by means of force. In this way, we work against the law of
nature.

2. Economic Freedom and Equality are Opposite-Individualists are of the

opinion that there should be free competition and free trade in economic sphere.
This will help every citizen to progress in all spheres. But whenever we try to
establish economic equality, it becomes hindrance in the way of economic liberty.
This results in limiting economic liberty of . human beings.

3. Competent individuals fail to show their Competency-When we give

equal rights and opportunities to all then competent individuals fail to show their
competency. For example, in democracy, all persons, good or bad are given equal
political rights and it is difficult to differentiate between good and bad person.
 4. Principle of equal Freedom is Wrong-To keep all men on the same level and
treat them equally is not only wrong but immoral also because all men are not equal.
To give equal status to intelligent, dull, educated, uneducated is basically wrong. To
treat a doctor, an engineer, professor, laborer and unemployed equally is injustice.

Conclusion-After reading two diverse opinions regarding the relationship between liberty
and equality, we come to the conclusion that equality and liberty are not opposed to each
other rather, they are complementary of each other. Those who treat them opposite do
not know the real meaning of both. If we read the positive meaning then equality and
liberty are closely related to each other.

Relation between Liberty and Law

Liberty & Law can be seen as two siblings who love and hate each other at the
same time. To have liberty , we need law and to have law we need liberty. Those
two ideas are so interrelated with each other that they have to be proportionally
weighted to get a fair result. Their kid is called justice and under its name it has
been built our whole judicial system around the world.

Justice can be seen as a really confusing idea. Many have addressed theories
about justice and how important is to society, but I am sure that not many have
really comprehended its importance that is held on its root. Justice to me is the
authenticity of reality that must be shown in a civil society. In other words, the
truth that each one of us carries and has the need to preserve from any
violations. Setting this understanding in a philosophical background , justice can
be viewed as a universal truth and thus the “real truth” prevails over the “less real
truth”. For example, if A tells B that the glass is filled with water and B tells C that
the same glass is filled with coffee, then who tells the truth ? Someone could
answer that A tells the truth cause he is exploiting the first letter of the alphabet
and thus he holds the scepter of the first observer. Someone else may argue that
we may not know, as it depends on how someone see the glass or someone else
may argue that it depends on what water or coffee means to A and B. Obviously,
the balance of justice (an accepted truth for everyone) cannot be defined easily as
there are many perceptions in the world.

However, when we talk about justice we need to limit the space of ambiguity ,
because legislation has to be clear and easily accessible by any citizen . This
means that mother liberty and father Law need to control their kid justice and set
the base for a fair legislation. Liberty is the idea of freedom in a political frame. So
, when we talk about liberty we talk about freedom against oppression in a civil
society. Law is the system of rules that guarantees liberty to preserve its nature
and help justice to function. Without Liberty there is no Law, without Law there is
no liberty , without liberty and Law there is no justice. This is why Law has to be
unbiased and liberty has to be controlled to not be transformed to anarchy and
violate the universal truth that leads to justice . It is dangerous for liberty to
become oppressive this is why liberty has to be guarded by Law in order to
maintain justice and in order to preserve societies from anarchy and chaos. Law is
logic and most of the times the rule of the ‘lesser of the two evils’ prevails. When
a new law is passed, this might affect some people in society in a negative way
but some others in a positive way . What really matters is to keep the majority of
the people safe and sound and thus sometimes Law cannot serve absolute liberty
to everyone. Therefore, oppression is intrigued by the same tool that preserves
liberty and gives birth to justice. This tool is called Law and to each one of us , as
units, may seem subjective but towards groups of people, it can approach
objectivity or accepted truth by majority. It is not a black or white decision ,
because Law is driven by societal and financial forces and unfortunately it cannot
keep everyone happy. Thus liberty cannot be served and justice does not really
exist as we think , it is a relative model . They are just ideas that force
maintenance of our societies against chaos. The relation between Law and Liberty
is not an absolute one and will never be.

1. Law is the Condition of Liberty:

“Where there is no law there is no freedom”, says John Locke. Therefore, the
existence of law is essential for the existence of liberty. It is the laws that protect
liberty. In the absence of law the individual will have to seek the help of might in
‘order to safeguard his liberty.

And there will be “might is right”. In the absence of laws anarchy will prevail in
society and people will degenerate into primitive savages who lived in the state of
nature as described by Hobbes.

Professor Willoughby has asserted that “Freedom exists only when there is
restraint”. Gettell observes, “Liberty in any real and dependable sense is possible
only if sovereignty cists and becomes more perfect as sovereignty is more
completely organised”.

2. Law is the protector of Liberty:

Liberty is protected by law in three ways. First of all law provides congenial
atmosphere for the smooth running of civilized life in society. Law punishes the
criminals and defends the rights of the individuals. Secondly, laws guarantee the
enjoyment of individual rights and duties and protect them. The state punishes
the individual who causes harm to others and hinders the path of others. Thirdly,
constitution is the custodian of liberty. It is only the constitution that confines the
authority of the state and protects the fundamental rights of the people.

The more the liberty, the less the law – Some scholars advocate that law should
not provide for liberty because more provisions for liberty would defeat the
ultimate purpose of the law. In other words, liberty is in contradiction with the
purpose of law and therefore, negates it.

Relation Between Law & Equality:

There is a close relationship between law and equality. We cannot be describe the
relationship between law and equality in few words. Because they are connected
with each other very deeply..
1.Law is the creator of equality:
There is a saying, "Law is the creator of equality. And if there is good rule of law in
society, then everyone gets equal opportunity. As a result, equality has become a
reality. But if law is not equal for all, then there will be chaos in society. Problems
arise because of which the need for equality in the field of law is immense,
because without equality the real reflection or implementation of the law is not
possible.

In the same way, laws are needed for equality. Because as a result of the
application of the law, equality gets its real form. So it can be said that law is the
creator of equality.

2. Equality is ensured by law:

Law prevails in society, creates a balanced environment . Thus, citizens at all
levels have equal opportunity to manage and manage life. But living in an
environment without equality is almost impossible. Because the society that is
created or managed without equality only has social chaos. This requires law.
Because as a result, equality is ensured. Also, the law can help if someone is in
trouble. And if there was no equality, the law could not give equal benefits to
everyone. So law and equality complement each other.

Under the influence of law if you are everybody soon is equal to socio political
and civic benefits. benefits and ensure it in the constitution, event at a small
reduction can result in a city goal seeking refuge in state law.

In the observation of these, we can finally say law and equality is really closely
related. And equality cannot be imagined without the rule of law.
.