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Please note that all pages are written in the Modern Language Association Format. For more information, see MLA Format Defined. |
A discussion of American democracy presupposes a basic understanding of what government is and what purposes it fulfills. But in reality, as one cannot comprehend what hot means without experiencing cold, one cannot achieve the fullest understanding of American democracy without a basic knowledge of other theories of government.
One method by which governments may be classified is according to distribution of power. In a unitary government, the central government possesses much authority and decision-making power. Local governing bodies simply serve as administrative arms of the central government. Great Britain is a familiar example of a unitary government; individual British counties have little of the power commonly exercised by American states. France, with 90 departments grouped into 36 provinces, also has a unitary form of government. It is important, however, to note that unitary governments are not inherently less democratic than other forms (Sanford 10).
Power is distributed completely opposite of a unitary government in a confederate government. Local governments protect and preserve their own authority by forming a weak central government. The United States has briefly employed confederate systems of government, in the Articles of Confederation, whose weaknesses led to the current federal system, and in the southern states’ attempts to form the Confederate States of America (Sanford 10).
In a federal government, power is split between a central government authority and its constituent states. Usually, an overriding law of the land, known as a constitution, allocates duties, rights, and privileges to each level of government. The constitution usually defines how power is shared between national, state, and local governments; the power to amend this constitution is usually granted to the citizens or their governmental representatives (Sanford 10-11).
A second way by which governments may be classified is according to decision-making power. There are two basic categories in which governments are classified. In a totalitarian government, the power of rulers is not limited by outside forces, such as elections or public opinion. Totalitarian systems also restrict personal freedom in most cases.