[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-detail-40713-en":3,"doc-seo-40713-105":30,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":91},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",{"doc_id":7,"user_id":8,"nickname":9,"user_avatar":10,"doc_module":4,"category_id":11,"category_name":12,"doc_title":13,"doc_description":14,"doc_content":15,"file_id":16,"file_url":17,"file_type":18,"file_size":19,"view_count":20,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":21,"is_downloadable":21,"audit_status":21,"page_count":22,"language":23,"language_code":24,"site_id":25,"html_lang":24,"table_of_contents":26,"faqs":27,"seo_title":13,"seo_description":14,"update_tm":28,"read_time":29},40713,687197207057,"Sage","https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_29158cc5080c5b710cf443261637dec0",2,"Literature","Political Theory An Introduction","Political Theory: An Introduction provides a structured overview of political thought and the core reasons political theory is needed to interpret human life and social order. It introduces how theory works, distinguishing political from other domains, and frames major developments in Western modernity and debates about the decline and types of political theory. The concepts section explains liberty, equality, justice, rights, democracy, citizenship, power, sovereignty, state, civil society, and property through key distinctions, historical evolution, and major theoretical critiques, including Rawls, Sen, Foucault, and feminist approaches.","Political Theory  \nPolitical Theory An Introduction  \nEdited by  \nRajeev Bhargava Ashok Acharya  \nCopyright © Rajeev Bhargava and Ashok Acharya, 2008  \nLicensees of Pearson Education in South Asia  \nNo part of this eBook may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without the publisher’s prior written consent.  \nThis eBook may or may not include all assets that were part of the print version. The publisher reserves the right to remove any material in this eBook at any time.  \nISBN 9788131706251 eISBN 9788131775875  \nHead Office: A-8(A), Sector 62, Knowledge Boulevard, 7th Floor, NOIDA 201 309, India Registered Office: 11 Local Shopping Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi 110 017, India  \nContents  \nPreface xi  \n PART – I  WHAT IS POLITICAL THEORY AND WHY DO WE NEED IT?  \n1. What Is Political Theory? | Rajeev Bhargava 2  \nIntroduction 3  \nWhat Is Theory 5  \nThe Distinctiveness of Theory? 8  \nCosomologies and Common Sense 12  \nWhat Is Political? 14  \nPoints for Discussion 16  \n2. Why Do We Need Political Theory? | Rajeev Bhargava 18  \nIntroduction 19  \nThe Big Questions of Human Life 19  \nThe Emergence of Western Modernity 21  \nExplaining Human and Non-human Nature 21  \nUnderstanding Humans 23  \nThe Difference Between the Human and Non-human Worlds 23  \nDecline of Political Theory? 27  \nTypes of Political Theories 29  \nLittle Theories, Grand Theories 31  \nCosmologies and Political Theory 33  \nHistory of Political Thought and Political Theory 34  \nPoints for Discussion 36  \nvi CONTENTS  \n PART – II CONCEPTS  \n3. Liberty | V. Sriranjani 40  \nIntroduction 41  \nMeaning 41  \nEvolution of the Concept 41  \nClassiﬁcation: Negative and Positive Liberty 48  \nLiberty and Other Concepts 52  \nThe Concept of Liberty in India 54  \nPoints for Discussion 57  \n4. Equality | Ashok Acharya 58  \nIntroduction 59  \nEvolution of the Concept 60  \nWhy Equalize? 65  \nEquality of What? 66  \nIn Conclusion: The Politics of Equality 72  \nPoints for Discussion 72  \n5. Justice | Krishna Menon 74  \nIntroduction 75  \nThe Issue of Distributive Justice 76  \nProcedural Justice 77  \nJohn Rawls: Justice as Fairness 78  \nLimitations of Rawls’ Theory of Justice 80  \nCommunitarian Critique 81  \nFeminist Critique 82  \nJustice, Capabilities, and Freedom: Amartya Sen’s Extension  \nof John Rawls’ Theory of Justice 83  \nEnd-State Theories 84  \nFeminist Accounts of Justice 85  \nConclusion 86  \nPoints for Discussion 86  \n6. Rights | Papiya Sengupta Talukdar 88  \nIntroduction 89  \nThe Idea of Rights 89  \nTheories of Rights 93  \nHuman Rights 98  \nSome Recent Debates on Rights 99  \nConclusion 104  \nPoints for Discussion 104  \nCONTENTS vii  \n7. Democracy | Janaki Srinivasan 106  \nIntroduction 107  \nThe Concept 107  \nDirect Participatory Democracy 109  \nLiberal Democracy 111  \nObjections to Democracy 116  \nPerspectives on Democracy 118  \nKey Debates in Democratic Theory 124  \nConclusion 128  \nPoints for Discussion 128  \n8. Citizenship | Anupama Roy 130  \nIntroduction 131  \nWhat Do We Mean by Citizenship? 131  \nHistorical Development of the Concept of Citizenship 132  \nT. H. Marshall: Equal and Universal Citizenship 137  \nLimits of Liberal Citizenship: Uniformity and Generality 138  \nThe Search for Alternatives 139  \nNew Contexts and Changing Concerns:  \nMulticulturalism and Globalization 141  \nConclusion 146  \nPoints for Discussion 146  \n9. Power | Nivedita Menon 148  \nIntroduction 149  \nConceptions of Power 149  \nPower as Exploitation 151  \nAuthority, Legitimacy and Hegemony 152  \nFeminist Theories of Power 154  \nFoucault on Power 155  \nConclusion 157  \nPoints for Discussion 157  \n10. Sovereignty | Krishna Menon 158  \nIntroduction 159  \nHistorical Evolution of Sovereignty 159  \nTheories of Sovereignty 160  \nThe Changing World and the Concept of Sovereignty 165  \nConclusion 168  \nPoints for Discussion 168  \n11. State | Swaha Das 170  \nIntroduction 171  \nWhat Is the State? 171  \nviii CONTENTS  \nThe Modern State 172  \nWhat the State Is Not: Civil Society and the Nation 175  \nJus","cbCaiiI6e4jbfSkl","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaiiI6e4jbfSkl","pdf",1369202,7,1,355,"English","en",105,"# Preface\n# Part I: What Is Political Theory and Why Do We Need It?\n## What Is Political Theory?\n## Why Do We Need Political Theory?\n# Part II: Concepts\n## Liberty\n## Equality\n## Justice\n## Rights\n## Democracy\n## Citizenship\n## Power\n## Sovereignty\n## State\n## Civil Society\n## Property","[{\"question\":\"What is political theory and how does the book explain its distinctiveness?\",\"answer\":\"The opening chapters define political theory, discuss what theory is, and examine what makes political inquiry distinctive from other kinds of thinking. It also considers common sense and broader cosmologies as part of how political theory is understood.\"},{\"question\":\"Why does the book say political theory is needed?\",\"answer\":\"It presents political theory as necessary for addressing “big questions” about human life, explaining links between human and non-human nature, and interpreting the emergence of Western modernity. It also discusses reasons for perceived decline and outlines different types of political theories.\"},{\"question\":\"Which major political concepts are covered in the concepts section?\",\"answer\":\"The concepts section develops liberty, equality, justice, rights, democracy, citizenship, power, sovereignty, state, civil society, and property. Each topic is organized with definitions, historical or conceptual evolution, and key debates and critiques.\"}]",1783314513,547,{"code":4,"msg":31,"data":32},"ok",{"site_id":25,"language":24,"slug":33,"title":13,"keywords":34,"description":14,"schema_data":35,"social_meta":86,"head_meta":88,"extra_data":90,"updated_unix":28},"political-theory-an-introduction","",{"@graph":36,"@context":85},[37,53,68],{"@type":38,"itemListElement":39},"BreadcrumbList",[40,44,47,50],{"item":41,"name":42,"@type":43,"position":21},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":45,"name":46,"@type":43,"position":11},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",{"item":48,"name":12,"@type":43,"position":49},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/literature/",3,{"item":51,"name":13,"@type":43,"position":52},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/political-theory-an-introduction/40713/",4,{"url":51,"name":13,"@type":54,"author":55,"headline":13,"publisher":57,"fileFormat":60,"inLanguage":24,"description":14,"dateModified":61,"datePublished":62,"encodingFormat":60,"isAccessibleForFree":63,"interactionStatistic":64},"DigitalDocument",{"name":9,"@type":56},"Person",{"url":41,"name":58,"@type":59},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-07-12","2026-07-06",true,{"@type":65,"interactionType":66,"userInteractionCount":20},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":67},"ViewAction",{"@type":69,"mainEntity":70},"FAQPage",[71,77,81],{"name":72,"@type":73,"acceptedAnswer":74},"What is political theory and how does the book explain its distinctiveness?","Question",{"text":75,"@type":76},"The opening chapters define political theory, discuss what theory is, and examine what makes political inquiry distinctive from other kinds of thinking. It also considers common sense and broader cosmologies as part of how political theory is understood.","Answer",{"name":78,"@type":73,"acceptedAnswer":79},"Why does the book say political theory is needed?",{"text":80,"@type":76},"It presents political theory as necessary for addressing “big questions” about human life, explaining links between human and non-human nature, and interpreting the emergence of Western modernity. It also discusses reasons for perceived decline and outlines different types of political theories.",{"name":82,"@type":73,"acceptedAnswer":83},"Which major political concepts are covered in the concepts section?",{"text":84,"@type":76},"The concepts section develops liberty, equality, justice, rights, democracy, citizenship, power, sovereignty, state, civil society, and property. Each topic is organized with definitions, historical or conceptual evolution, and key debates and critiques.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":51,"og:type":87,"og:title":13,"og:site_name":58,"og:description":14},"article",{"robots":89,"canonical":51},"index,follow",{"doc_id":7,"site_id":25},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":92},[93,97,100,104,109,114,118,123,128,131,135],{"id":21,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":94,"show_sort_weight":95,"slug":96},"Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":11,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":12,"show_sort_weight":98,"slug":99},80,"literature",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":101,"show_sort_weight":102,"slug":103},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":105,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":106,"show_sort_weight":107,"slug":108},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":110,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":111,"show_sort_weight":112,"slug":113},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":20,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":115,"show_sort_weight":116,"slug":117},"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":119,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":120,"show_sort_weight":121,"slug":122},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":124,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":125,"show_sort_weight":126,"slug":127},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":126,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":129,"show_sort_weight":126,"slug":130},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":132,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":133,"show_sort_weight":132,"slug":134},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":136,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":137,"show_sort_weight":105,"slug":138},19,"General","general"]