Presentation Pro
Magruder’s
American Government
CHAPTER 1
Principles of Government
© 2001 by Prentice Hall, Inc.
1st Day Questions
1.What is perfect freedom?
2.What is power?
3.What is authority?
4.What is legitimacy?
5.How is legitimacy established?
6.What is democracy?
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CHAPTER 1
Principles of Government
SECTION 1
Government and the State
SECTION 2
Forms of Government
SECTION 3
Basic Concepts of Democracy
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Chapter 1
SECTION 1
Government and the State
• How is government defined?
• What are the basic powers that every
government holds?
• What are the four defining characteristics of
the state?
• How have we attempted to explain the origin
of the state?
• What is the purpose of government in the
United States and other countries?
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Chapter 1, Section 1
Introduction Assignment
• Define government, public policy, legislative
power, executive power, judicial power,
constitution, dictatorship, democracy, state,
sovereign, autocracy, oligarchy, unitary
government, federal government, division of
powers, confederation, presidential
government, parliamentary government,
compromise, free enterprise system, law of
supply and demand, mixed economy
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What Is Government?
Government is the
institution through which a
society makes and enforces
its public policies.
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Chapter 1 Section 1
The State
The state can be defined as having these four
characteristics:
Population
A state must have people,
the number of which does
not directly relate to its
existence.
Sovereignty
Every state is sovereign. It
has supreme and absolute
power within its own
territory and decides its own
foreign and domestic
policies.
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Territory
A state must be comprised
of land—territory with known
and recognized boundaries.
Government
Every state has a
government — that is, it is
politically organized.
Chapter 1, Section 1
3 Basic Kinds of Power
•
Legislative Power
Power to make law and to frame public policies
•
Executive Power
Power to execute, enforce, and administer law
•
Judicial Power
The power to interpret laws, to determine their meaning, and to settle
disputes that arise within the society
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Origins of the State
The Force Theory
•
The force theory states that one person or a small group took
control of an area and forced all within it to submit to that
person’s or group’s rule.
The Evolutionary Theory
•
The evolutionary theory argues that the state evolved naturally
out of the early family.
The Divine Right Theory
•
The theory of divine right holds that God created the state and
that God gives those of royal birth a “divine right” to rule.
The Social Contract Theory
•
The social contract theory argues that the state arose out of a
voluntary act of free people.
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Chapter 1, Section 1
The Purpose of Government
The main purposes of government are described in the
Preamble of the Constitution of the United States:
“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a
more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic
Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote
the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty
to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish
this Constitution for the United States of America.”
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Chapter 1, Section 1
Purpose of Government
•
To Form a More Perfect Union
Constitution was built in the belief that in union there is strength
It was built after the articles of confederation failed because they were
powerless to confront the chaos and confusion of the time
•
To Establish Justice
“To provide justice is the most sacred of the duties of the government” –
Thomas Jefferson
No purpose, no goal of public policy, can be of greater importance in a
democracy.
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Purpose of Government
•
To Insure Domestic Tranquility
Order is essential to the well-being of any society, and keeping the peace at
home has always been a prime function of government
•
To Provide for the Common Defense
One of government’s major responsibilities.
Defense is mentioned far more often in the constitution than any of the other
functions of government it created.
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Purpose of Government
•
To Promote the General Welfare
Government acts as a servant to its citizens in many ways. Public schools are
a prime example.
In the U.S. the services that government provides are those that benefit all or
most people and are not likely to be provided by voluntary acts of private
individuals or groups.
•
To Secure the Blessings of Liberty
“the God who gave us life gave us liberty at the same time.” –Thomas
Jefferson
“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety
deserve neither liberty nor safety.” – Benjamin Franklin
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Purpose of Government
•
“Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.” – Thomas
Jefferson
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Section 1 Review
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
What is the difference between a government and a state?
6.
Explain the following statement: Much of the thought upon which
present day democratic government rests began as a challenge to the
theory of the divine right of kings.
7.
Can you explain how the language of the Preamble reflects the idea of
the social contract.
Who holds power in a dictatorship?
What is the purpose of a constitution?
Give an example of a use of judicial power.
The U.S. is sovereign, but the “states” are not. Could the U.S. function
if the “states” were sovereign.
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1st ESSAY
• Two broad purposes of American
government—insuring domestic tranquility
and securing the blessings of liberty—
sometimes come into conflict. Considering
this, do you agree or disagree with Benjamin
Franklin's view: "They that can give up
essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety"?
Explain your reasons.
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Locke Assignment
1.
2.
3.
Read page 11. Answer the 4 questions.
4.
Write a page and a half explaining why you answered the
questions the way you did and how they were different or the
same to John Locke’s ideas. Cite any phrases that are used in
the Declaration of Independence (pages 40-43). Final paragraph
needs to explain if you agree with Locke and why.
Answer the questions on the worksheet in your own opinion.
Compare your answers to how you think Locke would have
answered the questions.
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Bell Ringer
1. A government is
(a) the institution through which a society makes and enforces its public policies.
(b) a collection of people.
(c) always democratic.
(d) the organization representing farms and industries.
2. A state has the following four characteristics:
(a) population, territory, sovereignty, and government.
(b) sovereignty, a perfect union, welfare, and territory.
(c) people, places, force, and divine right.
(d) justice, defense, liberty, and domestic tranquility.
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Chapter 1, Section 1
SECTION 2
Forms of Government
• How can we classify governments?
• How are systems of government defined in
terms of who can participate?
• How is power distributed within a state?
• How are governments defined by the
relationship between the legislative and
executive branches?
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Chapter 1, Section 2
Classifying Governments
Governments can be classified by three
different standards:
(1) Who can participate in the governing process.
(2) The geographic distribution of the governmental
power within the state.
(3) The relationship between the legislative
(lawmaking) and the executive (law-executing)
branches of the government.
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Chapter 1, Section 2
Classification by Who Can Participate
Democracy
•
•
•
In a democracy, supreme
political authority rests with
the people.
A direct democracy exists
where the will of the people is
translated into law directly by
the people themselves.
In an indirect democracy, a
small group of persons,
chosen by the people to act
as their representatives,
expresses the popular will.
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Dictatorship
•
•
•
A dictatorship exists where
those who rule cannot be
held responsible to the will of
the people.
An autocracy is a
government in which a
single person holds unlimited
political power.
An oligarchy is a
government in which the
power to rule is held by a
small, usually self-appointed
elite.
Chapter 1, Section 2
Classification by Geographic
Distribution of Power
Unitary Government
•
A unitary government has
all powers held by a single,
central agency.
Confederate Government
•
A confederation is an
alliance of independent
states.
Federal Government
•
A federal government is one in which the powers of
government are divided between a central government and
several local governments.
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Chapter 1, Section 2
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Classification by the Relationship Between
Legislative and Executive Branches
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Chapter 1, Section 2
Forms of Government
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Chapter 1, Section 2
Section 2 Quiz
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
What defines a unitary gov’t?
6.
More than a century ago, British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli
declared: “I must follow the people. Am I not their leader?” What do
you think he meant by that comment?
How is power distributed in a federal government?
Who holds power in an oligarchy?
What specific trait gives the U.S. a presidential system of gov’t?
In a democracy, those who are responsible for the day-to-day conduct
of gov’t are accountable to the people for what is done in their name.
Which form of gov’t, presidential or parliamentary, do you think comes
closer to this ideal? Why?
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Bell Ringer
1. In a democracy,
(a) independent states form an alliance.
(b) supreme political authority rests with the people.
(c) those who rule cannot be held responsible to the will of the people.
(d) the rule by a few, select individuals regulates the will of the people.
2. The United States government has the following characteristics:
(a) confederate, parliamentary, and dictatorship.
(b) unitary, presidential, and democracy.
(c) federal, presidential, and democracy.
(d) unitary, parliamentary, and dictatorship.
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Chapter 1, Section 2
2ND ESSAY/Bell Ringer
•
Is democracy more or less efficient as
a form of government than dictatorship?
Explain the reasons for your answer.
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SECTION 3
Basic Concepts of Democracy
• What are the foundations of democracy?
• What are the connections between
democracy and the free enterprise system?
• How has the Internet affected democracy?
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Chapter 1, Section 3
Foundations
The American concept of democracy rests on
these basic notions:
(1) A recognition of the fundamental worth and dignity of every
person;
(2) A respect for the equality of all persons;
(3) A faith in majority rule and an insistence upon minority
rights;
(4) An acceptance of the necessity of compromise; and
(5) An insistence upon the widest possible degree of
individual freedom.
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Chapter 1, Section 3
Fundamental Worth of the Individual
• This is of overriding importance in democratic
thought.
• Insists that each person’s worth and dignity is
recognized and respected at all times
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Equality of All Persons
• “all men are created equal” – Jefferson
• Equality of opportunity
• Equality before the law
• Holds that no person should be held back because
of race, color, religion, or gender
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Majority Rule with Minority Rights
• Will of the people and not the dictate of the ruling
few that determines public policy.
• Majority must always recognize the right of any
minority to become the majority.
Majority must always be willing to:
• Hear objections
• Bear criticisms
• Welcome suggestions
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Necessity of Compromise
• Decision making must be a give-and-take among
the various competing interests
• Compromise is an essential part of democratic
concept because:
It is made up of equal individuals w/different
opinions and interests
Few public questions have only two sides
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Individual Freedom
• Democracy insists that each individual must be as
free to do as he/she pleases as far as the freedom
of ALL will allow.
• “The right to swing my fist ends where the other
man’s nose begins.” – Oliver Wendell Holmes
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Democracy and the Free Enterprise System
•
•
•
The free enterprise system is an economic system
characterized by private or corporate ownership of
capital goods; investments that are determined by
private decision rather than by state control; and
determined in a free market.
Decisions in a free enterprise system are determined
by the law of supply and demand.
An economy in which private enterprise exists in
combination with a considerable amount of
government regulation and promotion is called a
mixed economy.
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Chapter 1, Section 3
Democracy and the Internet
• Democracy demands that the people be
widely informed about their government.
• Theoretically, the Internet makes
knowledgeable participation in democratic
process easier than ever before.
• However, all data on the World Wide Web is
not necessarily true, and the long-term
effects of the Internet on democracy has yet
to be determined.
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Chapter 1, Section 3
Discussion
1. What characteristics define a state?
2. On what three general bases can governments be classified?
Explain each.
3. Briefly describe each of the five basic concepts of democracy.
4. Discuss why compromise is such an essential part of
democracy.
5. Describe the relationship between the rights of the individual and
the rights of the overall society.
6. In what sense must a democratic society provide for the rights of
the minority? What obligation does this place on the majority?
7.How has the Internet affected democracy?
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BELL RINGER
1. All of the following are basic notions found in the American
concept of democracy EXCEPT
(a) a recognition of of the fundamental worth and dignity of every person.
(b) a respect for the equality of all persons.
(c) the rule of government by a single individual.
(d) an acceptance of the necessity of compromise.
2. In a free enterprise system, the means of capital are owned
(a) by private and corporate entities.
(b) by government agencies.
(c) by only the agricultural sector.
(d) equally by the collective citizenry.
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Chapter 1, Section 3
Bell Ringer
• Finish yesterday’s essay!
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Chapter 1 Introduction Assignment
• Define government, state, sovereign, judicial
power, executive power, legislative power,
dictatorship, autocracy, oligarchy, unitary
government, federal government,
confederate government, democracy, direct
democracy, representative democracy,
presidential government, parliamentary
government
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BELL RINGER
• DEFINE THE TERM GOVERNMENT IN
YOUR OWN WORDS.
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What else to be ready for on 9 Weeks Test
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•
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•
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Characteristics of a state
Theories of origins of a state
Classifications of
governments
Foundations of democracy
Types of colonies
Important English documents
Attempts at colonial unity
Results of both continental
congresses
Characteristics of
constitutions
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state
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•
•
•
•
•
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Weaknesses of the articles of
confederation
Virginia plan/New Jersey plan
Constitutional compromises
Influences/reactions to
constitution
Characteristics of the
constitution
Formal amendment process
Formal amendments
Informal amendment process