PRINCIPLES OF GOVERNMENT
“Who Rules?” Reading & Outline Notes
Name: ___________________________________
SOMEONE’S GOT TO BE IN CHARGE
If you compared all the governments in the world,
you would find one thing in common: Someone is in
charge. The question is, who? There are many
different forms of government. Some have one
leader who has all the control. Others give power to
the people. In the reading below, you will read about
several different forms of government that exist (or
have existed) in the world.
ME, MYSELF AND I
An autocracy is a government in which one person
has all the power. There are two main types of
autocracy: a monarchy and a dictatorship.
The CIA World Factbook defines a monarchy as “a government in which the supreme power is lodged in the hands
of a monarch who reigns over a state or territory, usually for life and by hereditary right; the monarch may be
either a sole absolute ruler or a sovereign – such as a king, queen, or prince – with constitutionally limited
authority.”
Monarchs usually come to power through their family line: the current king or queen’s oldest child becomes the
next king or queen. In some monarchies throughout the world, especially those throughout history, the monarch
held absolute power and had the final say over all aspects of the government (also known as an absolute
monarchy). Recently, monarchs have begun to share power with other institutions within the government. Often,
even the monarchs themselves are also subject to the country’s constitution and laws (constitutional monarchy).
A dictatorship is a form of government where one leader holds absolute control over all aspects of the government
and many times the citizens’ lives. If there is a constitution, the dictator has control over that, too—so it doesn’t
mean much. Although other parts of the government may exist, such as courts or a lawmaking body, these
branches always do what the dictator wants them to do. They do not represent citizens.
Within an autocratic government, usually there are two general philosophies of governance: authoritarian and
totalitarian. The term “authoritarian” refers to a form of government in which the government’s authority is
imposed onto many aspects of citizens' lives (such as limited political options and harsh economic conditions
controlled by the government), but allows a relative degree of freedom throughout that society (maybe in one’s
personal decisions, such as drugs or abortion). The term “totalitarian” refers to aa form of government that seeks
to completely subordinate the individual to the state by controlling not only all political and economic matters, but
also the attitudes, values, and beliefs of its population (think Stalin, Mao, current-day North Korea).
POWER TO THE PEOPLE!
A democracy is a form of government in which supreme power is retained by the people, but which is usually
exercised indirectly through a system of representation and delegated authority periodically renewed. There are
two fundamental types of democracies:
In a representative democracy, citizens elect leaders to represent their rights and interests in government. The
elected leaders, or representatives, do the day-to-day work of governing the country: They consider societal issues,
work to find solutions, pass laws and do all of the other things necessary to keep a country running. Citizens hold
the ultimate power, though, because if they don’t like what their representatives are doing, they can vote in new
ones!
In a direct democracy, there are no representatives. Citizens are directly involved in the day-to-day work of
governing the country. Citizens might be required to participate in lawmaking or act as judges, for example. The
best example of this was in the ancient Greek city-state Athens. Most modern countries are too large for a direct
democracy to work.
WE, OURSELVES AND US
In an oligarchy (OH-lih-gar-kee), a small group of individuals holds power throughout a government. Oligarchy is a
Greek word that means “rule by a few.” Sometimes this means that only a certain group has political rights, such
as members of one political party, one social class or one race. For example, in some societies throughout history
only noble families who owned land could participate in politics and government.
An oligarchy can also mean that a few people control the country. For example, a junta is a small group of
people—usually military officers—who rule a country after taking it over by force. A junta often operates much like
a dictatorship, except that several different individuals share power throughout the country.
RELIGIOUS RULE
A theocracy is a form of government in which a God or divine ruler (Deity) is recognized as the supreme civil ruler,
but the Deity's laws are interpreted by church authorities (bishops, mullahs, etc.). Essentially, theocracies are
governments that are subject to religious authority (“Theo” is a Greek word that means god).
In a theocracy, religious law is used to settle disputes and rule the people. A theocracy can also be a democracy,
dictatorship, monarchy, or just about any other kind of government. For example, the Republic of Iran recognizes
Islamic law, but Iran’s citizens vote to elect their leaders. Modern theocracies are usually found in countries where
the population is strongly religious (especially throughout the Middle East).
RULE BY NONE
According to the CIA World Factbook, anarchy is defined as “a condition of lawlessness or political disorder brought
about by the absence of governmental authority.” During anarchy, no one is in control—or everyone is, depending
on how you look at it. Sometimes the word anarchy is used to refer to an out-of-control mob.
When it comes to government, anarchy would be one way to describe the human state of existence before
government is developed or after it totally collapses. It would be similar to the way animals live in the wild, with
everyone looking out for themselves. Today, people who call themselves anarchists usually believe that people
should be allowed to freely associate together without being subject to any nation or government. Although
several countries throughout the world are “stateless,” there are no countries that have anarchy as their official
form of government.
THE GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION OF POWER
A unitary state is a state governed as one single unit in which the central government is supreme and any
administrative divisions (sub-national units) exercise only powers that their central government chooses to
delegate to them. Most of the
political states throughout the
world have a unitary system of
government (the most relevant
example being Great Britain).
A federation (a government
using a federal system) is a form
of government in which
sovereign power is formally
divided – usually through a
constitution – between a central government or authority and several constituent regions (states, colonies,
provinces, etc.) so that each constituent region retains some management of its internal affairs. An excellent
example of a federation is the federal system used throughout the United States! The federal government holds a
degree of power over content defined in the U.S.
Constitution while the states retain power over
all other issues that pertain to that state (think
about the relationship between Ohio’s state
government and the federal government in
Washington D.C.)
A confederation (or confederacy) is simply a
union between states, provinces or territories
that creates a central government with limited
and specific powers. In a confederacy, the constituent entities (states, provinces or territories) retain supreme
authority over all matters except those delegated to the central government. The current European Union (28
different countries in Europe) is an example of a modern-day confederacy.