Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: The background of this study is the long standing but often neglected relationship between metaphysical inquiry and political practice. While political science has increasingly favoured empirical and institutional analysis, the underlying assumptions about being, causality, and human nature continue to shape political systems in profound ways. The problem addressed is that contemporary political discourse frequently dismisses metaphysics as irrelevant to practical governance, leading to an incomplete understanding of political legitimacy and authority. The aim of this article is to demonstrate that metaphysical commitments are not optional extras but are inherent to any coherent political theory. The method employed is a philosophical analysis of key texts from the Western tradition, including the works of Plato, Aristotle, Thomas Hobbes, G. W. F. Hegel, and Hannah Arendt, tracing how their metaphysical positions informed their political conclusions. The contemporary relevance lies in current debates over natural law, human rights, populism, and the legitimacy of international institutions, all of which rest on contested metaphysical claims. The conclusion argues that the rejection of metaphysics in politics is itself a metaphysical position, and that a more explicit engagement with these foundational questions is necessary for robust political reasoning. Metaphysics and politics are not separate domains but two dimensions of a single inquiry into the good life in common. This study further situates the metaphysics politics nexus within broader debates in contemporary philosophy, particularly those concerning realism and anti-realism, the grounding of normativity, and the ontological status of social institutions. By doing so, it extends the argument beyond historical exposition to a systematic reflection on the indispensability of metaphysical reasoning in political thought.
Institution: Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu-Alike
Language: English
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W7165763003