Politics

the activities associated with the governance of a country or other area, especially the debate or conflict among individuals or parties having or hoping to achieve power.

1. activities that relate to influencing the actions and policies of a government or getting and keeping power in a government
   • He is an important figure in American politics.
   • The students discussed the latest news in national/local politics.
   • Politics has always interested her. = She's always been interested in politics.
   
   — often used with a plural verb
   
   • Politics have always interested her.
   • He talked about the ways in which global politics are changing.
   • The mayor's politics [=the political decisions the mayor made] were often criticized during her time in office.
   
   — see also party politics, power politics
2. the work or job of people (such as elected officials) who are part of a government
• Politics is a competitive profession.
• She plans on going into politics. = She plans on entering politics. [=she plans on getting a job that involves politics]
3. the opinions that someone has about what should be done by governments : a person's political thoughts and opinions
• She has changed her politics.
• His politics are very liberal/conservative. [=he believes that governments should be liberal/conservative]
4. often disapproving : the activities, attitudes, or behaviors that are used to get or keep power or an advantage within a group, organization, etc.
• I don't want to get involved in office politics.
• She wrote a book about sexual politics [=the way men and women deal with and behave toward each other] in the academic world.

Politics has existed as long as humans have faced scarcity, have had different beliefs and preferences, and have had to resolve these differences while allocating scarce resources. It will continue to exist so long as these human conditions persist—that is, forever. Politics are fundamental to the human condition.

Politics means different things to different people. Politics, and related terms like political and politician, can have both positive and negative connotations. The Greek philosopher Aristotle argued that humans were “political animals” in that only by engaging in politics could humans reach their highest potential. Yet often, the terms political and politician can be used in disparaging ways to refer to individuals using trickery or manipulation to obtain or preserve their status or authority. More formally, a politician is someone running for elective office or serving in it or as a person who is using the skills of a politician in other social interaction. A political actor is anyone who is engaged in political activity. Politics involves all the actions of government and all the people who work for, serve, or challenge it.

This book takes the broadest view, adopting the guidance of political scientist Harold Lasswell, who defined politics as “who gets what, when, how.” Politics exists wherever people interact with one another to make decisions that affect them collectively. Politics exists within families. When parents decide where the family will live: politics. The family (who) gets a place to live (what) at the point of decision (when) based on the parents’ choice (how). When your school decides what tuition to charge: politics. When the government imposes taxes or funds education: politics. Most generally, politics is any interaction among individuals, groups, or institutions that seek to arrive at a decision about how to make a collective choice, or to solve some collective problem.