An investigation of the political theories of individualism and collectivism

Abstract

This thesis examines the political traditions of Collectivism and Individualism from a methodological point of view. The approach taken is in the form of case studies. The Collectivist tradition is represented by the philosophies of G. W. F. Hegel and K. Marx, the Individualist tradition by those of T. Hobbes and J. Rawls. Each case study considers a single work by one of these philosophers in order to examine in detail the methodology of that particular philosopher's political philosophy. The argument of the thesis is that both traditions rest on methodological misunderstandings about the relationship between individuals and their political society. The case studies are designed to bring out these misunderstandings and show the effects they have on each philosopher's political position. The problems of Hegel and Marx are compared as are those of Hobbes and Rawls. It is argued that the problems of these political philosophies are typical of the traditions they represent. The thesis' conclusion is that each tradition fails to recognize, within its methodology, the complex relationships between the different levels of organization within a political society. It is argued that the organization of political society cannot be deduced from an a-historic human nature, but the nature of this organization is, at least in part, explainable in terms of the historical nature of its members.