Cumhuriyet Üniversitesi İktisadi ve İdari Bilimler Dergisi

Öz

Among the concepts of political science and political philosophy, the republic is a concept whose meaning and perception is not clear and unambiguous. Although its long history and emotional baggage contribute to its ambiguity, perhaps the most important source of uncertainty is its strange relationship with its conceptual neighbors: monarchy, state and democracy. This strangeness comes from the fact that the republic is sometimes seen as identical with each of these concepts and sometimes as opposing concepts. This state of being both identical and antagonistic leads to the blurring of the meaning of the republic by being intertwined with different concepts. This study attempts to clarify the meaning of the republic by separately examining its relationship with its conceptual neighbors. The aim here is not to provide a final definition of the republic by meticulously separating it from other concepts. Instead, it is to draw attention to the fact that the conceptual dichotomies that the republic forms with each concept also constitute a ground for interaction. Each concept in the dichotomies of republic and monarchy, republic and state, republic and democracy affects and is affected by the republic in a different way; it is transformed as it transforms. When viewed from a historical perspective, in each conceptual duality, the republic and the concept it is related to sometimes converge and sometimes antagonize. In fact, it is important to note that there are no absolute meanings in these dichotomies; instead, there is an interaction. As a matter of fact, all three conceptual dichotomies are nourished by a richness of meaning that cannot be reduced to identity or opposition, that converge and diverge in interaction, but are neighbors through certain values. Moreover, each of the dichotomies serves to understand a different section of the historical and theoretical transformation of the republic.