PYQ Vault · Paper 1 · Western Political Thought
Everywhere, inequality is a cause of revolution – Aristotle. Comment.
How the answer moves
The flow snapshot — the routes in, the body, the counter-view and the routes out.
Flow snapshot — how the answer moves
Intro routes
GB quote = heart of Aristotle’s revolution theory → revolution = any change in constitution/rulers, big or small → root cause = injustice bred by inequality G8} revolution defined broadly → among many causes, inequality the deepest → because it breeds a sense of injustice
Body flow
Ramm proportionate justice → injustice = equals treated unequally / unequals treated equally → felt mis-distribution of honour, office, wealth → discontent → rebellion → inequality real or imagined → relative deprivation → perceived injustice = most combustible material → Canevaro & Mantzouranis: clashing proportional-equality conceptions → roots of stasis / metabole → remedy: strong middle class + mixed polity → narrows gap, softens resentment
Counter-view
Aristotle narrow + status-quoist (revolution only political, seeks prevention) vs Marx → revolution as structural transformation, driving force of history
Conclusion routes
G33 claim powerful but limited → link between inequality and instability stays sharp G23 perceived injustice, not poverty alone, is the real trigger → insight holds across regimes
Model answer
Handwritten, in the form it would be written in the examination hall.
