Citizens are a vital part in any government; some more than others. There is a great contrast between the roles citizens play in a democratic government rather than a government under absolute control. Emerging in the 16th century, absolute monarchy is a form of government in which the ruling monarch has absolute control without limitations. In this form of government, the monarch is the head of state and head of government with unrestricted political power. On the contrary, a democracy is a form of government in which citizens elect leaders to represent them through voting. On the surface, there is a lot of differences: having a say in government versus not having a say, all for one versus one for all, and fixed terms versus a lifetime of …show more content…
ruling by one person. However, there is a similarity between the two governments; they are both institutions of authority and are charged with the responsibility of managing their populations. In this regard, they both drive the development of law and legal procedures. The most obvious way a democracy and a government under absolute control differ is by the voice their citizens have.
In a democracy citizens have various rights and a vas quantity of freedoms. The people have the right to choose their public officials and dismiss them as they wish (Doc 6). People in a democracy ultimately have the power to choose how they want their government to be ran by electing people. Likewise, all the citizens are respected as individuals and have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness (Doc6). Finally, in a democracy the freedom and rights guaranteed to the people by the Constitution shall be maintained by the constant endeavor of the people (Doc 6). These are all very nice advantages that citizens in a government under absolute control do not possess. In a government under absolute control, like China, a citizen has little to no rights at all. According to Ying Ruocheng, his house is claimed to be ransacked three times by the Red Guards (Doc 8). The Red Guards are a group of various radical socialists in particular a militant youth movement in China that carried out attacks on intellectuals and other disfavored groups as part of Mao Zedong's Cultural Revolution in 1966-77. In a democracy citizens have rights to their property while people in a communist government, like China, do not. There is a major difference in the rights that the citizens in a democracy have compared the the rights a citizen has in a government under absolute
control. Another difference that the two governments possess is the amount of time a person can serve in a line of duty, such as president or king. In a democracy, a president can serve up to two four year terms while in a government under absolute control a ruler, like a king, is the king for his entire life. If citizens do not like a certain king or queen this is very unfortunate on their behalf because they have no control over who rules them. Higher class citizens who are favored by the king worried about what the next ruler would think of them (Doc 4). To be assigned a king or queen title, you have to be born into the royal family. Royal families in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries believed in divine right. Absolute kings claimed to divine right, meaning that they were responsible to God alone (Doc 2). This was very important to many citizens, for disobeying the king means disobeying God himself. Furthermore, the quantity of their time ruling differs on the type of government, also. Contrary, there is a similarity between the two governments: they both have the power to drive law and legal procedure and manage their populations. In a democracy, we have certain rights that our government provides for us. Likewise, in a government under absolute control has a set of rights or rules that they have to abide by. Under democratic rule, there is a Bill of Rights that are rights given to the citizens by the government (Doc 3). Under absolute rule, it is all the rights that the government takes away from a citizen (Doc 5). Although the contents of the rules may be extremely different, it brings about the same point: there is a set of rules that a country's citizens have to abide by, no matter the government type. In conclusion, a government under democratic rule differs greatly from a government under absolute control. Two of many differences are the period in which major political figures serve and the voices of their citizens. In a democracy, citizens are noticed and have a say in how they wish for their government to be ran. Contrary, the citizens under absolute control have little to no say in government whatsoever. In a democracy, presidents can only serve up to two four year terms while kings can rule their whole lifetime. A government under absolute rule and under democratic rule both provide their citizens with a set of rules to follow. Concluding, that citizens play a part in any type of government.
Democracy? There are three types of citizens. A citizen is a legal recognized subject who they
Kyi Suu San Aung. "The Quest of Democracy." Reading The World: Ideas That Matter, edited
In 1852 the term “Popular Sovereignty” was created. This was a political idea that said the people who lived in a region should have the right to decide for themselves what type of government they wanted to have. In America, it was applied to the idea that colonists of a land had to decide under what terms they wanted to join the Union; it was applied to the status of either a free state or slave state. “The first crisis occurred when California, whose population had exploded in the gold rush, petitioned for statehood as a free state in December 1849. Admitting California, however, would upset the current, carefully wrought balance of fifteen slave states and fifteen free states”9
Throughout the course of history, mankind has been recorded to corrupt itself. Men have grown tired of simply surviving; they have had to take and conquer others. Absolute monarchies control wealth, land, and even lives of men. The conditions of the people were solely dependent on the conditions of the one who was in power in that particular place and time. History has proven that most men rule unwisely in their kingdoms. To avoid tyrannical rule, some make an attempt to set up a government in which the people ruled themselves. This form of government is called a democracy, or “rule of the people.” History has also revealed through the Greeks and the French Revolution, that a democracy that gives complete power to the people, “absolute democracy”, is nothing more than a short prelude to tyranny.
America, at its founding, was radically democratic relative to the time period, but was still far from being a true democracy. In 1776, as the Declaration of Independence was signed, there were many restrictions on voting: only white, property owning, males had the right to vote. This leaves out all women, all Natives, all African Americans, and all men who were not rich; all of those groups made up a large percent of the population. The founding fathers of the United States also didn’t fully believe in the people’s ability to vote intelligently. John Adams wrote to his wife Abigail that women were too consumed in childcare and were too delicate to be trusted with the power of voting. He also said to James Sullivan, another politician, that if voting were to be more widespread, that it would be dangerous because it could, “confound and destroy all distinctions, prostrate all ranks…” (John Adams 1776).
Colonial America Citizen Participation is one of the democratic features. Citizen Participation is when the citizens get to participate in the government. It is more than a right it’s an opportunity to get to be apart of something going on in your community. An effective citizen participation will most likely build a stronger democracy. Citizen Participation takes many forms like, debating issues, voting, serving in the military, paying taxes, running for office, and many many more. That can be found that in document 2 Voting Qualifications.
A totalitarian government and a democracy government have two completely different aspects of how to rule. The totalitarian government is very powerful and demanding. Only one person has all power in a totalitarian government and makes all the decisions. This government controls every aspect of the people’s lives. People living in a totalitarian government are afraid to criticize the government as they are under close watch and sometimes family members disappear. In order to change residence, get married or change jobs, people must file applications with the government. Totalitarian governments usually have control over healthcare and education. Some people might say they are a poor form of government. However, the citizens that live under a totalitarian government support it ("McMahon").
A memorable expression said by President Abraham Lincoln reads, “Democracy is government of the people, by the people, and for the people”. Democracy, is a derived from the Greek term "demos" which means people. It is a successful, system of government that vests power to the public or majority. Adopted by the United States in 1776, a democratic government has six basic characteristics: (i) established/elected sovereignty (where power and civic responsibility are exercised either directly by the public or their freely agreed elected representative(s)), (ii) majority rule(vs minority), (iii) (protects one’s own and reside with) human rights, (iv) regular free and fair elections to citizens (upon a certain age), (v) responsibility of
One of the contemporary definitions of democracy today is as follows: “Government by the people, exercised either directly or through elected representatives; Rule by the majority” (“Democracy” Def.1,4). Democracy, as a form of government, was a radical idea when it manifested; many governments in the early history of the world were totalitarian or tyrannical in nature, due to overarching beliefs that the strong ruled over the weak.
More importantly, what is a democracy exactly? Some would define it as a form of government where the people rule, others as where the poor rule, and I would say it is where everyone contributes in how the government is ran but do not control the final decisions made. In Aristotle 's "Democracy and Oligarchy", he discusses the different kinds of democracies that exist and how equality plays a huge role in defining it. Without equality, or even limiting it, it can change a democracy into an oligarchy. He goes into detail about each kind there is and further analyzes how regardless of having similar elements, they are each unique in their own way.
... result of a direct democracy, complications like getting every citizen to vote on every single issue, something close to impossible with modern populations that grow like grass in springtime. These changes have caused democracy to become intertwined with other forms of government, and while they have caused a deviation from pure democracy, they have allowed countless nations to function efficiently while maintaining the basic pillar of democracy: that ultimate authority and power is derived from the citizens.
Constitutional Democracy The basic premise of a constitutional democracy is that government has rules and all of the people have voices. Through free and fair elections, we elect candidates to represent us. The Constitution of the United States guarantees us the right to do this, and to live democratically. The framers attacked tyrannical government and advanced the following ideas: that government comes from below, not from above, and that it derives its powers from the consent of the governed; that men have certain natural, inalienable rights; that it is wise and feasible to distribute and balance powers within government, giving local powers to local governments, and general powers to the national government; that men are born equal and should be treated as equal before the law.
Democracy is “...the word that resonates in people’s minds and springs from their lips as they struggle for freedom and a better way of life...” (Schmitter and Karl, 1991:75). However, the word democracy has many different means depending on the country and context it is used in. “Every country has is own culture and comes by its political system through its own history” (Greenberg, 2007:101, cited in Li, 2008:4). Li, (2008) states that because of China’s political structure the usual road to democracy may be difficult for it to achieve. The western idea ...
In America today we tend to take political equality for granted. Even if we differ in abilities and outcomes, we still accept the notion that “all men are created equal,” as the Declaration of Independence has it. That everyone is entitled to an equal say in the political system thus seems to most people completely logical. Most people in contemporary society therefore view democracy as perhaps the only fundamentally just form of government; it is an ideal that society aspires toward. Many also see democracy as the best way of maintaining liberty and respect for human rights against government control.
The foundation of the modern political system was laid in the times when the world was strangled in slavery. In those moments, enlightened minds in Greek came up with the new system that was there to remain for the next thousands of years. This system, now known as democracy, is a form of government in which supreme power is vested to the people themselves. People have the right to elect their leaders directly or indirectly through a scheme of representation usually involving periodically held free elections. A new democratic government is usually established after every 4-5 years, and it is trusted with the responsibility to cater to the needs of all the people irrespective of the fact that they voted for them or not. Although the minorities may not be very pleased with the idea of democracy, however, a democratic government is certainly the best because it establishes social equality among people, reduces the conflicts in the state to a minimum, gives the chance to vote repeatedly, and creates patriotism.