ABSTRACT
One of the fundamental aspects of the human condition, according to Hannah Arendt (1958), is plurality, that is, the unavoidable fact that each man and woman is in some important respect unique, different from everyone else, yet cannot exist in solitude, but only in close cooperation and dialectic contrast with one another. This need to establish contact and consensus despite deep differences in perspectives and interests is what makes us political animals. One of the implications of this state of affairs is that human behavior cannot be fully understood except from a systems perspective, that is, from a viewpoint that takes into account the mutual effects of interactions among individuals, institutions, and the symbol systems they inherit and create.
