reification
A concept in MARXIST, COMMUNIST, and CRITICAL THEORY
philosophy that describes the reverse of the proper
relationship of subject and object (or humans and
things). In healthy, free humanity, humans properly
control and order nature, society, and things, but with
ALIENATIONin society, this proper human dominance of
the world is reversed, and things, commodities, eco-
nomics come to control people. In CAPITALISM, this
reification takes the form of the economic market
(which should serve humankind) dominating and con-
trolling humanity. MARXISMis confident that SOCIALISM
will end this unnatural reversal of roles between hu-
mans and their environment, as people take over the
processes of production, distribution, and life gener-
ally. The experience of communism in the SOVIET
UNIONand China did not confirm this optimistic per-
spective. Instead, as even such Marxist thinkers as
Georg Lukács and Herbert MARCUSEshowed, socialism
imposed even more control over humans than did
market capitalism.
The underlying assumption of the reification view
is that humanity can and should control its own des-
tiny, unencumbered by divine, natural, or social limita-
tions. This proud perspective of human abilities is
challenged by the REALISM of various thinkers (St.
AUGUSTINE, Edmund BURKE, Reinhold NIEBUHR, etc.) and
by NATURAL-LAWtheory.
religion and politics See CHURCH AND STATE.
Renaissance
Meaning the “rebirth” of CLASSICAL (Greek and
Roman) HUMANISMin 13th- to 16th-century Italy, Re-
naissance political thought is seen as a rejection of
MEDIEVAL CHRISTIANconceptions (St. AUGUSTINE) of hu-
manity and politics. Reviving the REPUBLICANideals of
ARISTOTLE, PLATO, and CICERO, Renaissance philosophy
focused on the REALISMof worldly politics (as opposed
to religious or spiritual dimensions), humanity’s social
nature and reason, direct participation of all citizens
in governance, and the separation of CHURCH AND
STATE.
Growing partly from the new independence of sev-
eral Italian city-states (such as Florence), the transla-
tion of Aristotle’s Politicsin the year 1260, the strength
of trade GUILDS, and a discovery of Arabic astrology,
Renaissance politics were known for their ruthless-
ness, cruelty, deceit, and violence (as expressed in
MACHIAVELLI). Still, they led to the development of
MODERN SOCIAL-CONTRACTtheory (Thomas HOBBES) and,
ultimately, LIBERALISM. With the rise of legalism, the
RULE-OF-LAWdoctrine, and prominence of lawyers in
government, Renaissance political theory diminished
the value of citizens’ characters and personal ETHICS.
Christian REFORMATIONthought responded to this void
by emphasizing the individual’s responsibility to God
and Christian vocation in public service (as described
by John CALVIN).
An effect of Renaissance ideas on perception of his-
tory was the replacing of a providential view of time
(moving toward the return of Christ by God’s plan)
with an ancient cyclical and Arabic astrological per-
spective (seeing history repeating itself and fortune-
tellers’ ability to predict the future).
A mixture of classical, Eastern, and civic HUMANIST
ideology and Renaissance literature was essentially
Modern and eclectic.Further Readings
Cochrane, E., and Kirschner, J., eds. The Renaissance.Chicago:
University of Chicago Press, 1986.
Skinner, Q. The Foundations of Modern Political Thought,vol. I.
The Renaissance.Cambridge, Eng.: Cambridge University
Press, 1979.representation/representative
When a person or institution governs for another
person or group, it is said that the first represents
the second. Most common in a REPUBLIC, the people
elect government representatives to express their
INTERESTS and to rule the country accordingly. The
details of how state officials are selected and in
what manner they represent their constituents vary
widely in different political theories and political
systems.
CLASSICALGreek political thought (ARISTOTLE) main-
tained that all CITIZENSshould rule in some capacity
and that the human need to rule could not be dele-
gated to other representatives. This classical or “direct-
DEMOCRACY” tradition continues in much of Western
political theory (MONTESQUIEU, ROUSSEAU, BARBER) that
denies the possibility of delegating the human political
function or of having democracy in a large or popu-
lous country.256 reification