Democracy As A Form Of Government - 1885 Words

Man was born free, and he is everywhere in chains. (â€Å"The Social Contract Book 1†1) These chains symbolize the constant pulls and ties the people have in their every day life. The chains can symbolize: taxes, education, healthcare, democracy, social norms, and political authority. The chains can symbolize anything that makes man more obedient to the state rather than himself. Rousseau opens his book with the question if there is such thing as a legitimate political authority that will work for everyone in the society or if there really is no such thing. Democracy as a form of government has many different definitions for the philosophers but I found that the common theme of the definition of democracy is the people; the body politic. Aristotle states his theory as democracy as a deviant constitution; Rousseau’s democracy refers to a social contract between the people and their rulers, James Cairns and Alan Sears explain democracy as disrupting everyday reality and developing new practices of popular power, and lastly Ranciere, Ranciere describes democracy as, â€Å"the reality of the power of the people that can never coincide with the form of a State.† These four political theorists all agree, democracy would not exist without the people. Through Aristotle, Rousseau, James Cairns and Alan Sears, and Ranciere I will explain what democracy is and the values and virtues essential to democracy as a form of government and as a practice. Aristotle gives his definition ofShow MoreRelatedDemocracy Is A Form Of Government1555 Words   |  7 Pagespeople of the United States decided they wanted a democratic form of government. A democracy is â€Å"a form of government in which the people rule themselves either directly or through freely elected representatives† (American Government Politics, pg. 5). Furthermore, a democracy is broken down into two more forms: a direct democracy and a representative democracy (also can be considered a republic). A direct democracy is a form of government, originally founded in ancient Greece, in which the peopleRead MoreDemocracy Is The Worst Form Of Government1296 Words   |  6 PagesWhat is democracy? Democracy a form of government in which the people freely elect representatives to govern them in a country, democracy guarantees free and fair elections, basic personal and political rights and independent court of law. There are two types of democracy, direct and indirect democracy. Direct democracy or pure democracy is where there is direct participate of the people; people make decisions for them instead of letting them representative make decision for them. Indirect democracyRead MoreDemocracy Is The Best Form Of Government1428 Words   |  6 PagesChurchill that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried. In other words, democracy is the best form of government for now. But he also implied, that democracy itself is not flawless, it is only better than all the other political forms. In fact, there are a lot of problems that democracy is not able to fix. For example, the balance and the efficiency of government of the state is the most debatable one. Democracy means that a government is â€Å"made of theRead MoreDemocracy : A Popular Form Of Government1744 Words   |  7 PagesDemocracy is a popular form of government. The term comes from â€Å"demokratia†, from demos, or â€Å"people† (Dah l 1). Democracy is a type of government that is supposedly ran by the people or as others would say population. The supreme power is in the hands of the people. We as a nation exercise this power by having the right to vote. Most of all, we vote the people in to represent us by each state. Then, the state representatives make decisions and vote for our best interest. In other words, majority ofRead MoreDemocracy Is The Worst Form Of Government Essay834 Words   |  4 PagesLegendary British Prime Minister Winston Churchill once said â€Å"Democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried† (Churchill as cited in Chu, 2005, para. 2). It should come as no surprise that when emerging nations are writing their constitutions, they model them after the American Constitution. Political scientists cite a number of different reasons for the success of the US Constitution; the Bill of Rights, separation of powers, and a bicameral legislature withRead MoreDemocracy Is the Best Form of Government.2424 Words   |  10 PagesDemocracy is a form of government in which all eligible citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Democracy allows eligible citizens to participate equally—either directly or through elected representatives—in the proposal, development, and creation of laws. It encompasses social, economic and cultural conditions that enable the free and equal practice of political self-determination. The term originates from the Greek ÃŽ ´ÃŽ ·ÃŽ ¼ÃŽ ¿ÃŽ ºÃ ÃŽ ±Ãâ€žÃŽ ¯ÃŽ ± (dÄ“mokratà ­a) rule of the people,[1] whichRead MoreDemocracy Is the Worst Form of Government1765 Words   |  8 Pagescritically state how democracy is the worst type of government, but before we do this let us be familiar with the whole process of democracy. Looking at the history of democracy or example â€Å"In Ancient Anthens in the fifth and fourth centuries before Christ, this gave us the word democracy (rule by the common people) the people in this case did not include women and slaves, both were believed to be naturally inferior to male citizens† (Mayo 1960: 36) but since thence then democracy has developed andRead MoreDemocracy Is The Worst Form Of Government2030 Words   |  9 PagesDemocracy originating from the Greek word ‘dÄ“mokratà ­a’ literally means ‘rule of the people’. ‘In an oligarchy the standard of definition is wealth†¦ in a democr acy the standard of distribution is citizenship.’ (Burns, T 2009). This suggests that people are at the centre of political power in a true democracy. Democracy is the form of government which allows people to have their say either directly through voting and referendums or indirectly by voting for elected representatives to stand for themRead MoreIs Democracy the Only Legitimate Form of Government?902 Words   |  4 Pages1. Evaluate the view that democracy is the only legitimate form of government A legitimate state can be defined as â€Å"A state in which its citizens have little or no significant resistance to the public policy and leadership of the state in question due to the rightful/legitimate exercise of power.† This Legitimacy of state is often a hard term to apply to any form of government in the modern political world due to the very differing cultures between the western and eastern world. However theRead MoreWhy Democracy is the Best Form of Government Essay1172 Words   |  5 Pageshave been in tact so civilizations remained structured and cohesive. As humanity advanced, governments obligingly followed. Although there have been hiccups from the ancient times to modern day, one type of government, democracy, has proven to be the most effective and adaptive. As quoted by Winston Churchill, democracy is the best form of government that has existed. This is true because the heart of democracy is reliant, dependent, and thrives on the populaces desires; which g ives them the ability