Complementary and mutually reinforcing, political science and political philosophy lie at the heart of the study of governance. The concept of how government could or should operate in the abstract is the province of political philosophy, while political science concerns itself with the concrete. Readers will chronicle the history and development of both fields and introduces readers to the major thinkers-including Aristotle, Machiavelli, and Weber-whose works have informed the study of politics the world over.