DEFINING POLITICS

CPBA 011
Ms SEKATLE
UNDERSTANDING POLITICS

• Politics is a process of maneuvering to assert rival interests.

• Politics is exciting because people disagree, or engage each other concerning how they
should live, who should get what, also how should power and resources be distributed.
• How should collective decisions be made,
• How matters should be resolved, and;
• How much influence should each person have (Heywood).
• Politics can be defined as activities associated with the governance of a country or area
(e.g, a debate between parties having power).
• Politics is the art of science of government,
UNDERSTANDING POLITICS
• Politics is also the art of science concerned with guiding or influencing
government policy.
• Politics is an attempt to improve human lives and create the good society.
Politics is above all a social activity, it is always a dialogue, and never a
monologue.
• Politics in its broadest sense, is an activity through which people make,
preserve and amend the general rules under which they live.
• Politics is also an academic subject (sometimes indicated by the use of
Politics with a capital “P”). Politics is again linked to the phenomena of
conflict and cooperation.
UNDERSTANDING POLITICS
• On the other hand, politics is the existence of rival opinions, different
wants, competing needs and opposing interests.
• Politics is portrayed as a process of conflict resolution, in which rival views
or competing interests are reconciled.
• Politics is usually thought of as a dirty word: it conjures up images of
trouble, disruption and even violence on the one hand, and deceit,
manipulation and lies on the other.
• Politics is also perceived as a means of rising in the world.