DECLINE OF POLITICAL THEORY

Political Theory is a body of thought that seeks to evaluate, explain and predict political phenomena. As a subfield of Political Science, it is concerned with political ideas, values and concepts, and the explanation or prediction of political behavior.

Political Theory is a hybrid of the two phenomena Political Philosophy or normative theory & empirical theory. It is a synthesis of history, philosophy and science and of normativism and empiricism.

Meaning of Decline of Political Theory

In the second half of the 20th century (after 1950's) some scholars proclaimed the decline of political theory on the basis of nature and status of political theory.

Decline of political theory does not mean the end of political theory or political science but it simply means the changing nature of political theory specially the decline of the traditional or normative political theory.

The traditional political theory is linked with political philosophy. There was no boundary between political theory and political philosophy in ancient political discourse.

Accordingly to many modern political scientists, the usefulness of this philosophical political theory has diminished.

Before debate on decline of political theory we should study about the evolution of political theory. After this we can better understand this concept.

EVOLUTION OF POLITICAL THEORY 

Scholars generally divide this evolution into three major eras:

• Classical Political Theory
• Modern Political Theory
• Contemporary political theory

1. Classical Political Theory: The classical political period laid the moral and philosophical foundations of discipline. It emerged in the ancient Greek period, period till the beginning of the 19th century.

Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, St. Augustine, these are important thinkers of classical political theory. Its nature is normative and prescriptive and focused on "Ought to be". Its objective was to find the best political order and establishing rational basis for belief.

2. Modern Political Theory: With the advent of the Renaissance and Enlightenment, political theory shifted from religious morality to secularism, individualism, and state sovereignty. Modern political theory originated towards the 20th century. It rejected the classical tradition and called it utopia. It emphasize on empirical studies and includes diverse trends like Institutionalism, Scientism, positivism, behaviouralism.

Most important proponents of this theory are Charles Merriam, Robert Dahl, David Easton, Gabriel Almond.

Its objective is to build a science of politics: empirical, measurable and value free.

3. Contemporary Political Theory: The 20th century reshaped the political theory include both science and values. This theory came into existence to the reaction against Modern Political Theory. It is philosophical as well as empirical. Its main thinkers are Robert Nozick, David Held, David Easton, John Rawls, Brian Barry, Michel Foucault.

It includes Feminism, multiculturalism, environmentalism, post colonialism, post-modernism. It emphasize the idea that empirical analysis and moral values can co-exist in political theory.

 Debate on the Decline of Political Theory

After understanding the evolution of political theory, we have to enter into the debate on the decline of political theory.

David Easton viewed on Political Theory 

David Easton, an American political scientist, in his 'Political System: An Inquiry into the State of Political Science' (1953) asserted that the traditional political theory was based on mere speculation. He pointed out that there has been no outstanding political philosopher after Marx and J.S. Mill. The theory given by these classic thinkers has no relevance in contemporary society.

The debate on the decline of political theory which appeared in 1950s was also joined by some other prominent writers like Alfred Cobban in his paper on 'The Decline of Political Theory' published in Political Science Quarterly (1953) and then Seymour Martin Lipset in his Political Man: The Social Bases of Politics (1960).

Let us know the thoughts of these prominent thinkers one by one. David Easton on Decline of Political Theory:

1. Historicism
2. Moral Relativism
3. Confusion between Science and Theory
4. Hyper-Factualism

• Historicism: David Easton in his 1953 book wrote that "Political Theory today is interested primarily in the history of ideas" and "the ever-increasing role of historicism is a major cause of the decline of political theory". Researches period between classical political theory and modern political theory merely in the era when researchers have shown no interest in developing any new political values but only discuss conventional values of the past and ancient political ideas. It is for this reason Easton has sharply criticized former political scientists such as Dunning, Sabine, Lindsay and McIllwain. They all have just developed their theories based on historical analysis.

• Moral Relativism: It simply means the exclusion of value from political theory. In the middle of the 20th century, the approval of empirical science out of efforts to turn political science into science. Although David Easton in the past also has given the idea of behavioralism to make political science a science, but later he is not in favor of completely avoiding the discussion of values. He emphasized that it is necessary to build a value system with a sensitive attitude towards the important problems of society.

• Confusion between Science and Theory: One of the main reason for the decline of political theory is the over reliance on scientific methodology to study the political phenomena. Modern political scientists use the scientific method of gathering information on a subject, but can't explain all the factors behind the phenomenon.

• Hyper-Factualism: In recent times politics & economics have shown remarkable success in collecting and applying complex methods of understanding public opinion, electoral conduct, parliamentary leadership etc. But they couldn't provide any theoretical dimension to their research studies. Easton calls this trend "theoretical mal-nutrition and surfeit of facts."

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Alfred Cobban's Views on Decline of Political Theory

Alfred Cobban, in his paper 'The Decline of Political Theory' published in Political Science Quarterly (1953), argued that political theory had lost its significance in both contemporary systems: the Capitalist system as well as the Communist system.

• Capitalist System: It emphasized liberty, democracy, etc., but failed to produce unique or deeply developed modern theories on these concepts.
• Communist System: There is a strict dominance of only one party, which doesn't allow any other alternative ideology to flourish.

Dante Germino's Views on Decline of P.T.

Dante Germino, in his book 'Beyond Ideology: The Revival of Political Theory', believed that the decline of political theory was clearly visible in the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century.

However, Germino also highlighted the thinkers who helped restore and revive political theory, such as Michael Oakeshott, Hannah Arendt, and Leo Strauss. In a 1975 paper, he extended this list of revivalists to include John Rawls, C.B. Macpherson, Robert Nozick, Herbert Marcuse, Jürgen Habermas, and Michael Walzer.

The reasons for the decline given by Dante Germino can be divided into two main factors:

1. Rise of Positivism: Over-emphasis on pure scientific data rather than political values.
2. The Prevalence of Political Ideologies: Political dogmas culminating heavily in Marxism.

Isaiah Berlin and Seymour Lipset's Views

According to them, the main reason for the decline of political theory is the universal acceptance of liberal democracy, because it practically ended the historical debate on the "best form of society."

In classical theory, most philosophers dedicated their thoughts to imagining the best ideal state or society. Now, with the global emergence and success of liberal democracy, this classic discussion has completely faded.

As Berlin and Lipset famously summarized:

"If classical political theory has died, perhaps it has been killed by the triumph of democracy.".       

 Conclusion

In conclusion, the debate over the "decline of political theory" in the mid-20th century was not about the absolute end of political studies, but rather a crisis of traditional normative theory. Thinkers like David Easton, Alfred Cobban, and Dante Germino rightly pointed out that an over-reliance on raw facts (hyper-factualism), the rise of positivism, and the global triumph of liberal democracy temporarily overshadowed deeply philosophical and value-based political thought.

However, as later contemporary scholars proved, political theory did not die; it merely evolved to balance both empirical science and moral values, ensuring its continued relevance in understanding our ever-changing political world.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q1. What does the "Decline of Political Theory" actually mean?

Ans: The decline of political theory does not mean the absolute end of political science as a discipline. It simply refers to a phase in the mid-20th century when traditional, philosophical, and value-based (normative) theories lost their dominance. During this time, scholars shifted their focus excessively toward historical analysis or raw empirical data.

Q2. What are the main reasons given by David Easton for the decline of political theory?

Ans: David Easton identified four major causes for this decline:

1. Historicism: An over-reliance on merely reciting and analyzing the history of past political thinkers instead of developing new ideas.
2. Moral Relativism: The complete exclusion of moral and human values from political analysis in an attempt to be purely scientific.
3. Confusion between Science and Theory: Misunderstanding the role of scientific methodology and applying it blindly to complex human politics.
4. Hyper-Factualism: The rapid accumulation of massive political facts and statistical data without building any solid theoretical framework out of them.

Q3. Why did Alfred Cobban believe political theory declined in Capitalist and Communist systems?

Ans: Alfred Cobban argued that both contemporary systems failed to sustain political theory. He believed the Capitalist system talked about liberty and democracy but failed to produce fresh, deeply developed modern ideas around them. On the other hand, the Communist system was restricted by a rigid, single-party rule that completely crushed any alternative political ideologies from flourishing.

Q4. Did political theory permanently die after the mid-20th century debate?

Ans: No, political theory did not permanently die. While it went through a period of crisis and decline, it was eventually resurrected. Thinkers like John Rawls, Robert Nozick, Hannah Arendt, and Jürgen Habermas initiated a powerful Revival of Political Theory by beautifully balancing scientific empirical analysis with essential human and moral values.