Question

Define politics and government. What is the relationship between the two?

Answer 1

Politics is the process whereby people decide how to live together-whether it 's a family, a school, or a country. Government is the decision making system used to make the decisions. There are several different political structures-ranging from autocracy to democracy. Everyone has the right to an fair say in a democracy, and decisions are taken by debate and vote.

Government means that power relations exist between the rulers and the governed, but the governing sense is not confined to the state. Government in this sense is in operation whether the power relationship is between states and citizens, institutions and clients, parents and children, doctors and patients, employers and employees, masters and dogs, or even oneself and oneself. (Think of the schemes of training, routine study, or diet people put themselves through as they try to change or direct their lives in a particular way). The role of the state and its impact on society (and vice versa) is just one aspect of relationships between governments.

But as micro-sociologists, the face-to - face dimensions of politics are also of interest to them. Most of politics simply consists of face-to - face backroom meetings and lobbying activities. What the public often sees is the front-stage of politics sanitized through gatekeeping by the media. Symbolic interactionists are most interested in meaningful interaction between the small groups that make decisions, or in the case of some recent parliamentary committees that demonstrate incapacity for meaningful interaction. The core of politics is the result of tiny exchanges over time between individuals and small groups.