Lesson 1: Question Compare and contrast two classic definitions of democracy – representative and participatory democracies. Discuss Aristotle’s view of democracy. What are the key parts of Schumpeter’s definition of democracy? Which of these two types of democracy did the Founding Fathers favor? What was the Founders’ view on the subject of direct democracy and the “will of the people”?
The Age of Democracy and the Age of Absolutism were two different periods of time. The age of Enlightenment had new ideas spreading throughout the world about government and human rights. The enlightenment was a great period of establishment of democracy .A democracy is when the common people are considered as the primary source of political power. Throughout the enlightenment there were philosophers who believed greatly in a democratic government. Some of the most familiar philosophers were Voltaire, John Locke, and Montesquieu.
The pathway essay The United States is built around freedom, equality and individual right. These basic rights include the right to vote, express religion, due process and many more. The United States is a democracy, meaning that all citizens have the right to participate in government actions. Although the United States is considered a democracy, it is not a pure democracy, but actually a republic. Within a republic there are still government positions, each possessing specific powers and even rank.
Alcala, Jesse TTH Pols MO3H 11:30 10/16/13 Essay Topic #2 Many individuals define Democratic in many ways. What I defined democratic to mean is based upon the principles of democracy or social equality. Therefore a democratic branch would offer the equality to the majority of citizens as well to the minority groups. Equality means the state of being equal in status, rights and opportunities. The branch that is most democratic has the view of both the minority and majority party in the decision making process.
How democratic is the UK? To evaluate how democratic the UK is we must first understand what democracy is and recognize its many types. The most widely accepted definition of democracy is that created by former president of the united states Abraham Lincoln who said that democracy is 'government of the people, by the people and for the people'. There are then also the differing types of democracy, four of which are: parliamentary democracy, liberal democracy, direct democracy and representative democracy. At a glance it is obvious that a major part of UK democracy is parliamentary democracy as this is our chosen form of government, having the houses of parliament which consist of the house of commons and the house of lords.
b. Commager ii. The Constitution is essentially a political document, carefully created to stand for years to come and to serve as an example of democracy for people around the world. II. How thesis is supported c. Beard iii. Beard supports his thesis by giving evidence of the economic interests of elite who wrote the Constitution, and then showing how the structure of the government benefits these specific interests.
There have been numerous meanings attached to the word democracy and over time democracy within government has meant different things to different governments (Heywood, 2007 p.4). The notion of democracy originates from Ancient Greece and has been considered simply by Abraham Lincoln in his 1864 Gettysburg Address as cited by Heywood (2007 pg. 72) as ‘government of the people, by the people, and for the people’. This definition suggests that a democratic government should be made up of citizens of a state who develop laws and policies to manage their society in order to protect, progress and provide for all members of their society. According to Maddox (2005 p.489) democracy has a number of guiding principles, including that all human beings are equipped with a sense of right and wrong, the ability to guide their own lives, freedom of expression and toleration of others.
Thomas Jefferson actually had based the Declaration of Independence, which is still used and referenced today, off of John Locke’s and Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s theories and beliefs “that all men are created equal…that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” (Jefferson). Montesquieu, author of The Spirit of the Laws, had suggested the separation of powers. The separation of powers was a form of way to control power within the government, such as; having three branches of government in the United States has helped in keeping the power very limited. Then, there was Voltaire, which has been easily said to be the most popular Enlightenment thinker, who had stated that the government cannot take away nor limit a person’s freedom of religion and speech. In the formation of the United States, this was very pressed upon, because it carried the sole-purpose of what the United States wanted to be or pictured themselves becoming.
If our founding fathers intened the Constitution to establish a republic government, why are we so quick to respond that our government is a democracy? Does our misunderdstanding of these two terms make citizens believe that we are entitled, by the supreme law of the land, our Constitution, to make decisions and write legislation ourselves instead of allowing our elected representatives to act on our behalf? Should the Constitution be ammended to allow for a national voting referendum such as many states have adopted? In the paragraphs below I will discuss and define some key points that will give a broader persepective on the benefits and limitations of direct democracy. To start, we must clearly define the difference between a republic and a demcoracy.
Nick Wright U.S. History Ms. Wilkinson May 6, 2011 The Powers of the Federal Government One issue in politics is the amount of power that the federal government should be allowed to have. One side believes that the government should be there, helping us, but we shouldn’t be able to notice their presence. The other side believes that the government should actively participate in the everyday lives of citizens. In the United States today, the power of our government tends to lean towards the former of the two. We know that the government is there, protecting us, providing for us, and ensuring that our lives are good.