positive law

Application of theory of positivism to law. Law consists simply of the enforceable commands of government. It does not depend for its validity on any other criteria, and there are no religious or normative values by which it can be deemed invalid. Source: David Miller et al., eds, The Blackwell Encyclopaedia of Political Thought (Oxford, 1987)

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post-modernism

Theory of cultural and political variety. The account of the world given by MODERNISM no longer works in the final decades of the 20th century. Instead of single sets of values or political loyalties, there is a wide variety of groups and classes, aims and ideologies. Source: David Harvey, The Condition of Postmodernity (Oxford,

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sexism

An assumption of fundamental male superiority. The observable differences between men and women are neither accidental nor socially constructed but are the expression of fundamental and immutable differences which justify the different treatment of men and women and the privileges of the former. Sexism is normally an implication underlying many different theories rather than

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volonte generale

Theory propounded initially by the French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778). There is a general will of society as a whole which is distinct from the particular wills of individuals. The general will is both the truest interest of individuals, and the justification for government; although, paradoxically, individuals may consent to a government that thereafter limits their

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