The origin of the state

Theories of State Origin:

Various attempts have been made to explain in a speculative manner the method by which the state came into existence. These theories were concerned, not primarily with the actual historical process of state origin, but rather with a rational explanation of the way in which the state may have been supposed to originate. These theories were put forward for the purpose of explaining and justifying the existence and authority of the state. They were attempts to give rational answers to the questions of why men lived in political organization, of why they should submit to political authority, and of what limits should be placed to such authority. Among the most important of such theories were the following:

1. The force theory:

The theory of force held that the state came into existence as a result of the forced subjection of the weak to the strong. One group of thinkers used this theory to justify the state on the ground that the state is power, that might makes right and that the essence of the state is a sovereign will. Another group of thinkers used this theory to attack the state because of its injustice and to urge individual freedom and limited state action.

The theologians of the Middle Ages argued that the state was based upon force and injustice, and decried the origin of earthly sovereignty in order to subordinate temporal to spiritual power. Individualists and anarchists believe that the state is an evil, because of their desire for individuals freedom. Socialists argue that the state resulted from the aggression and exploitation of laborers by capitalists; and attack, not |the idea of the state itself, but the particular form of the present state, which they ascribe to its iniquitous origin,

2. The natural theory:

The natural theory viewed man as a political animal, and the state as a natural result of the instinct of sociability. It justified the state as a necessity determined by the very nature of man. It was not the creation of man but an inevitable and natural result of human nature. Accordingly, man could have no existence outside the state. His interests and those of the state were identical, and the state needed no further justification. A modification of this theory viewed the state as arising to meet the essential needs of man, and justified it on the grounds of its usefulness. The purpose of the state was to promote general welfare, and it was justified in taking any action that would be conducive to justice and the general good.

3. The divine theory:

During a large part of human history the state was viewed as of direct divine creation, and its government was theocratic in nature. In the early Oriental empires rulers claimed a divine right to control the affairs of their subjects and this light was seldom questioned. The Hebrews believed that their system was of divine origin, and that Jehovah took an active part in the direction of their public affairs

The rise of Christianity and the growth of the temporal power of the Catholic Church in the medieval period led to a bitter conflict between church and state and to an active discussion of the divine origin of political power. All were agreed that the ultimate source of authority was divine, but the supporters of the church declared that the Pope alone received his power directly from Goad. The Emperor, they held, received his authority indirectly through the Pope. The supporters of the state argued that the authority of the church should be limited strictly to spiritual affairs and that God delegated to rulers directly the control of temporal affairs.

The leaders of the Protestant Reformation gave further impetus to the theory of divine origin, and taught that civil authority is delegated by God to the temporal rulers and that subjects should give obedience. When the medieval conflict between church and state was replaced in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries by the contest within the state between king and people the controversy took a new form.

In opposition to the growing ideals of popular sovereignty and of the state as a deliberate creation of the people, the rulers again appealed to the theory of divine origin and looked to the church or support. Interest centered, not so much in the origin of political power itself as in the question of the persons by whom and the manner in which it could rightfully be exercised.

Those who supported royal power argued that God had delegated authority directly to kings, and that resistance to royal power was sin. Even after the success of the popular revolutions by which modem democracy was established, the idea of the “divinity that doth hedge a king” continued to exert a considerable influence upon the ideas of the people.

4. The social contract theory:

The social contract theory starts with the assumption that man lived originally in a “state of nature,” antecedent to the formation of political organization. In this condition he was subject only to such rules of natural law as are prescribed by nature itself, and was the possessor of natural rights. This primitive condition he was compelled to abandon, either, as some held, because it was too idyllic to last, or, as others held, because it was too inconvenient or terrible to be tolerated. In its plant: men deliberately formed an agreement, or contract, by which they set up a body politic.

Submitting to the control of all, they received in return the protection of all, thus losing their natural liberty but receiving in return Security. Human law replaced natural law, and each individual became the possessor of political rights and obligations. The Mate was thus of deliberate human creation, and authority Wag derived from the consent of the people.

While none of these earlier theories gives a satisfactory explanation of the actual historical and evolutionary nature of political origins, nevertheless each contributes elements of value. The, force theory overemphasizes one factor in state origin, but points out the important fact that the state, unlike all Other associations of mankind possesses the physical power to compel obedience. Force and power are distinctive Characteristics of the state, and war has played a prominent part in state origin and development.

The natural theory, while explaining neither the actual influences that created the state nor the nature of the process, emphasizes the important fact that the state is not an artificial creation but an inevitable and, at first, largely unconscious result of man’s nature and needs. The divine theory, while used mainly to bolster the claims of rulers and of churchmen, nevertheless suggests the moral responsibility of political authority and points out the important part played by religion in the early period of political life.

The social contract theory. While historically inaccurate, suggests the value of consent as a mythological basis for the spirit of unity necessary for state existence, as well as the necessity that law should be “natural” in the sense that it should represent accepted principles of justice and correspond to the needs of human nature and the circumstances of its time and place. This theory supported the revolutions by which tyrannical governments were overthrown and served as a basis for the growth of modern democracy.

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