Topic: Western Political Thought
Hannah Arendt analysed a few categories of vita activa. Explain.
Flow snapshot — how the answer movesIntro routesRoute 1 vita activa = three human activities (labour / work / action) → ranked in ascending order of importanceRoute 2 Arendt reframes…
Gramscis concept of Hegemony.
Flow snapshot — how the answer movesIntro routesRoute 1 hegemony = Gramsci’s answer to “why no proletarian revolution” → bourgeois power exceeds the economic baseRoute 2 rule rests on ideas…
Explain Marx’s understanding of Human Essence and Alienation.
Flow snapshot — how the answer movesIntro routesRoute 1 Young Marx’s humanist question → what kind of being is man / what order lets him flourishRoute 2 essence and alienation…
Discuss Hannah Arendt’s analysis of the role of ideology in modern totalitarian regimes.
Flow snapshot — how the answer movesIntro routesRoute 1 Origins of Totalitarianism → totalitarianism a novel form of rule, not enlarged tyranny → terror + ideology as twin instruments →…
Differentiate between Freedom and Liberty. Discuss Marx’s notion of freedom.
Flow snapshot — how the answer movesIntro routesRoute 1 terms used interchangeably → Marx gives them a distinct edge → liberty = liberal non-interference (Mill)Route 2 liberty = freedom from…
According to Gramsci, ‘hegemony is primarily based on the organisation of consent. Comment.
Flow snapshot — how the answer movesIntro routesRoute 1 Marx’s missing revolution → Gramsci’s answer is hegemony → rule by organised, manufactured consent, not force aloneRoute 2 hegemony = control…
Critically examine Hannah Arendt’s conceptual triad of labour, work and action.
Flow snapshot — how the answer movesIntro routesRoute 1 triad set inside vita activa → the ascending ranking is itself the argumentRoute 2 ranking recovers action + freedom from a…
Discuss Karl Marx’s concept of class.
Flow snapshot — how the answer movesIntro routesRoute 1 class = Marx’s central social category → not rank/status but relation to means of productionRoute 2 class as a production-relationship →…
Marx’s concept of ‘alienation’ is an essential part of the reality in capitalism. Explain.
Flow snapshot — how the answer movesIntro routesRoute 1 alienation ≠ moral complaint about employers → it is the objective condition of capitalist lifeRoute 2 estrangement is material & social,…
Comment on the Locke’s Social Contract in 150 words.
Flow snapshot — how the answer movesIntro routesRoute 1 contract argues for limited, consent-based government, not absolute powerRoute 2 men quit a moral state of nature (freedom/equality under natural law,…
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