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The Public and Its Problems · Theme
The State and Government
How The Public and Its Problems develops The State and Government.
The text distinguishes between the state as a formal political organization and the broader, dynamic processes of governance and community life.
Where it surfaces
- I: Search for the Public
The chapter defines the state as the organization of the public through officials to protect shared interests, emphasizing its experimental and historical nature.
- III: The Democratic State
Dewey defines the state functionally as the organization of a public to secure its interests, and discusses the dual capacity of officials and the problem of representative government.