Write A Paper Explaining Viewpoints Of Government ✓ Solved

Write a paper explaining viewpoints of government: Governmen

Write a paper explaining viewpoints of government: Government as a 'Positive Good' (proponents and examples), Government as a 'Necessary Evil' (proponents and examples), Government as an 'Unnecessary Evil' (proponents and examples). Then explain 'Ideology' and 'Political Ideology', list the four functions of ideology (Explanation, Evaluation, Orientation, Political Program), and describe the four major American ideologies (Liberals, Conservatives, Libertarians, Populists).

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Introduction

This paper outlines major historical and contemporary viewpoints on the role of government, examines their principal proponents and examples, and explains the concept of ideology and its functions. It concludes with a description of four major American political ideologies: liberals, conservatives, libertarians, and populists. The analysis draws on classical political theory and modern scholarship to situate each position in its intellectual and historical context (Hobbes, 1651; Locke, 1689; Paine, 1776; Marx & Engels, 1848).

Government as a "Positive Good"

Proponents of the view that government is a "positive good" argue that a proactive state is necessary to secure broadly shared opportunities, correct social injustices, and promote public welfare. This position treats government not merely as a protector of order but as an instrument for positive social transformation. Thomas Paine captured a moral rationale for government’s role in shaping civic virtue and public welfare by arguing government can "supply the defect of moral virtue" when private behavior or markets fall short (Paine, 1776).

In U.S. history, this perspective is exemplified by the New Deal and Great Society programs. Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal expanded federal responsibility for economic relief, regulation, and social insurance during the Great Depression, reflecting faith in administrative capacity to ameliorate structural crises (Kennedy, 1999). Similarly, Lyndon B. Johnson’s Great Society sought to reduce poverty and expand civil rights through substantial federal programs in health, education, and welfare (Dallek, 1998).

Government as a "Necessary Evil"

The "necessary evil" view sees government primarily as a restraint on human conflict and a guarantor of order rather than as a vehicle for expansive social engineering. Thomas Hobbes is the archetypal proponent: in Leviathan he argues that, in a state of nature, human life would be "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short," requiring a sovereign authority to prevent anarchy (Hobbes, 1651). Hobbes emphasizes coercive power and law as instruments to secure survival and peace.

Later theorists like John Locke accepted that government is essential but framed its legitimacy as deriving from a social contract to protect natural rights—life, liberty, and property. For Locke, government’s authority is conditional and limited: when rulers violate those ends, citizens retain the right to replace them (Locke, 1689). This blend of necessity and limitation influenced constitutional liberalism and modern democratic institutions.

Thomas Jefferson offers a related classical republican caution: government is necessary to secure liberty but should be constrained by constitutional limits to prevent creeping power and to allow private initiative to thrive (Jefferson, 1785).

Government as an "Unnecessary Evil"

Some critics argue that government is not only potentially dangerous but ultimately unnecessary. Anarchists advance a principled opposition to authority, asserting that centralized power stifles human development and coercive hierarchies can be replaced by voluntary cooperation (Kropotkin, 1902). Their critique centers on decentralized, non-hierarchical social organization.

Karl Marx offered a divergent rationale: he saw the state as an instrument of class domination under capitalism. In Marxist theory, the state serves bourgeois interests and therefore should be superseded by a classless society; after a revolutionary transition, Marx argued, the state would "wither away" as exploitation ended and formal coercive institutions became unnecessary (Marx & Engels, 1848).

Ideology and Political Ideology

Ideology is a coherent set of ideas about how society should be organized and how power should be used to achieve that vision. Political ideology specifically addresses the purpose, scope, and legitimate actions of government. Ideologies help people interpret political reality and decide on political action (Eagleton, 1991; Heywood, 2013).

Political scientists commonly identify four functions of ideology:

1. Explanation: Ideologies provide accounts of why social and political conditions exist, especially during crises.
2. Evaluation: They offer standards to judge institutions, policies, and historical developments.
3. Orientation: Ideologies give individuals a sense of political identity and belonging.
4. Political Program: They guide decision-making and collective action by recommending policy goals and strategies (Heywood, 2013).

The Four Major American Ideologies

Contemporary American politics is commonly described by four broad ideological types. These are ideal types that often overlap in practice but are useful analytically (Pew Research Center, 2017; Heywood, 2013):

1. Liberals

Liberals tend to favor an active government role in reducing economic inequality, regulating markets, and providing social safety nets. They generally prioritize civil liberties, expansive freedom of expression, and policies that address social determinants of crime and disadvantage (Pew Research Center, 2017).

2. Conservatives

Conservatives typically advocate for limited government intervention in the economy, lower taxes, and greater reliance on markets. On social issues, conservatives emphasize order, traditional values, and stricter criminal justice policies (Heywood, 2013).

3. Libertarians

Libertarians combine economic conservatism—preference for free markets and minimal state—with social liberalism, supporting extensive personal freedoms on matters such as speech, drugs, and privacy. They prioritize individual autonomy and minimal coercive state power (Pew Research Center, 2017).

4. Populists

Populists mix economic interventionism with cultural or social conservatism: they favor government action to protect ordinary citizens from perceived elite interests while endorsing traditional social norms and tougher law-and-order measures. Populism can appear across the left-right spectrum depending on context (Heywood, 2013).

Conclusion

Views of government range from seeing it as a positive engine for social improvement to conceptualizing it as a necessary or unnecessary evil. Each perspective rests on different assumptions about human nature, social order, and the legitimacy of coercion. Ideologies organize these assumptions into coherent frameworks that explain political realities, evaluate institutions, orient identities, and propose political programs. Understanding these viewpoints and ideological functions clarifies debates about the proper scope and purpose of government in modern democracies.

References

• Paine, T. (1776). Common Sense. London: W. and J. Strahan. (Paine, 1776)
• Hobbes, T. (1651). Leviathan. London: Andrew Crooke. (Hobbes, 1651)
• Locke, J. (1689). Two Treatises of Government (Second Treatise). London: Awnsham Churchill. (Locke, 1689)
• Jefferson, T. (1785). Notes on the State of Virginia. Paris: Didot. (Jefferson, 1785)
• Marx, K., & Engels, F. (1848). The Communist Manifesto. London: Penguin Classics. (Marx & Engels, 1848)
• Kropotkin, P. (1902). Mutual Aid: A Factor of Evolution. London: Methuen. (Kropotkin, 1902)
• Kennedy, D. M. (1999). Freedom From Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929–1945. New York: Oxford University Press. (Kennedy, 1999)
• Dallek, R. (1998). Flawed Giant: Lyndon Johnson and His Times, 1961–1973. New York: Oxford University Press. (Dallek, 1998)
• Heywood, A. (2013). Political Ideologies: An Introduction (5th ed.). New York: Palgrave Macmillan. (Heywood, 2013)
• Pew Research Center. (2017). Political Typology: Beyond Red vs. Blue. Washington, DC: Pew Research Center. (Pew Research Center, 2017)