If asked what democracy is, many would claim that it is a “government by the people”—a phrase popularized by Abraham Lincoln in his Gettysburg Address. However, in today’s society, there are three prominent theories—pluralism, elitism, and hyperpluralism— that attempt to explain who exactly has the power and influence in the United States of America. Each theory is centralized based on their own ideals and conclusions about who truly governs the nation. Our democracy has components of each of these political theories; each one has its own advantages and disadvantages. The three contemporary theories of American democracy: pluralism, elitism, and hyperpluralism provide more context for how policies and laws are actually created as opposed to …show more content…
It takes into consideration the components of pluralism and elitism. Hyperpluralism is defined as the idea that competing interests groups have gotten too powerful—making it impossible to accomplishing anything. This can result to muddled policy and policy gridlock due to the fact that some politicians will try to placate every group. Hyperpluralists assert that groups are the sovereign with the government their mere servant as powerful groups let their money and power do the talking. In this theory, average citizens are able to take part in policymaking by joining interest groups like in pluralism. However, it is taken to another level in this theory as interest groups that lose policymaking battles in Congress carry their agenda to the court. These groups and their members take advantage of the court system to get what they want and to bend policies to suit their own purposes. On the other hand, the Framers would not have expected for interest groups to gain that much power over the government, let alone use the judicial system for their own purposes. At that time, the Framers probably looked down on average citizens as they were illiterate, though I think that they would have been tolerant of groups whose members were wealthy and white. It would have been harder for interest groups to make use of the judicial system as well because judicial review is not specifically written in the
The ideology of pluralism is based on creating balance by distributing power evenly across culture and population. Political elitism is most often a small group of upper-class people who hold political positions solely with the intent to gain economic wealth, even in opposition to the public’s best interest. Plural-elitism is a mix of the two, where many elitist groups share a pluralistic relationship with each other. The American government uses neither fully pluralistic, nor fully elitist views, but a mix of the two resulting in a plural-elitist
Democracy is defined as “A system of government in which ultimate political authority is vested in the People.” The Declaration’s
Presently, there are three theories that have been posed to explain the American political process. They are, elite theory, hyperpluralism, and pluralism. While all of them have sufficient evidence in regard to discussion and debate, pluralism undoubtedly best explains the American political process. Pluralism states that our democracy is best achieved by the existence and cooperation between various groups, and individuals, which participate in government by means of election. In context of American politics, pluralism is the core which our political process revolves around.
Democracy is known as a system of government when all eligible people of a state can voice their own opinions as well as elect representatives. Democracy is not once mentioned in The Declaration of Independence. Pros of a democracy are, its by the people and for the people. Democracy is meant for everybody to be eligible to vote and they are able to vote. The people are also able to participate in what they think, feel , and voice about the political, social, and economic issues that are presented to them. It's in the people's best interest not just the governments. The goal is to find solutions with decision-makers best interest. The main goal is to is find solutions that are best for the people and regulate conflicts between states and government. A democracy imposes equality, the people's votes carry the same weight, which makes all individuals to be heard and make them feel as if their opinion is important. Other than in elections of the state a citizens
Referring in a detailed and specific way to a relevant aspect of US political institutions, personnel or processes, illustrate how US democracy can be considered elitist.
Governments are labeled by the groups of people that dictate the control of power of the State. The common sentiment of early American history was “the few versus the many”. The question of how a democracy lead by a few people would fail to materialize into an aristocracy was firmly addressed within the Federalist papers, notably number 57. Madison argues that limited terms as well as the heavy involvement by the population would keep the few elected from trampling the rights and interests of the many. While a distinct class system fails to materialize in the Constitution, a layered system shows that there are still divisions amongst both the few and the many. The few are divided by the offices that they hold. The Senate holds more prestige than the House by the limited capacity of its
Democracy, as it is used today, means “ the people rule.” A democracy is a form of government ruled by the people of the country through elections and representation. A democracy is really a form of republic known as a democratic republic. A republic is a government where officials elected by a small group of people that make the important decisions.
Politics is an integral part of our society, and in order for the citizens of any society, or a county to protect their rights and interest, electing the right people, and right theories are necessary. When it comes to government, Elitism and Pluralism are two systems which can be used as a structure of how the powers will be distributed. While the theory of Elitism prefers the distribution of power to be based on wealth, ancestry and intellect; Pluralism theory is much more diverse in the distribution of power, as it ensures equality for everyone, regardless of any differences. Pluralism serves as the model of modern western democracy. In the case of Baltimore, the pluralist theory is much more efficient due to its views on authority, rights
The term “democracy” had multiple definitions, including a government that was directly governed by the people. This term was used more often during the American Revolution to inspire the struggle for independence.
Pluralist theory views politics and decision making as a competitive phenomenon where different groups and individuals have different views and that there is no single elite group that exercises influence (Davis & Go, 2009). The theory holds that power is relatively broadly distributed among different interest groups. These groups hold different views of the same aspect and compete with each other for
The first element of government that halts progress in America is the hyperpluralist theory, an extension of the pluralist theory. Edwards, Lineberry and Wattenberg state that “According to pluralist theory, because of open access to various institutions of government and public officials, organized groups can compete with one another for control over policy and no one group or set of groups dominates” (16). Basically, the pluralist theory states that for every group, there exists another group with opposing views or goals and they help serve each other through compromise. The hyperpluralist theory, on the other hand, argues that these different groups can counteract each other, diminishing any progress that the other group achieved. Without power over the others, a group cannot push its agenda without the opposing group pushing its own agenda to set that group back. A positive aspect of this theory is that it prevents one group from dominating; however, it discourages any changes from happening in government. Edwards, Lineberry, and Wattenberg
America is synonymous with the word freedom, even being dubbed “the land of the free” by its own national anthem. But, what makes America so much more “free” than other countries? Some would argue that it’s America’s system of democracy, despite the fact that democratic governments are now the most common form of rule found in countries around the world. American democracy, although effective, is not the best democracy style for all nations; because, like many other countries, its government contains many flaws, including: its low voter turnout, two-party political parties creating division and deadlock in congress, and government positions of power being bankrolled and controlled by the rich.
Take it all the way back to when the constitution was being written. The founding fathers had a big choice to make; did they establish a direct democracy or a representative democracy? They had to weigh the pros and cons of each and they ended up deciding on a representative democracy. In this paper I will tell you why they made things the way they did and certain compromises they made along the way.
Churchill’s claim that “democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried” is deliberately provocative and intended to challenge the reader’s simplistic ideal that democracy is without faults. There are an estimated 114 democracies in the world today (Wong, Oct 3rd lecture). A figure that has increased rapidly in the last century not necessarily because democracy is the best form of government, but primarily for reason that in practice, under stable social, economic and political conditions, it has the least limitations in comparison to other forms of government. Be it the transparency of a democratic government or the prevalence of majority rule, all subdivisions of democracy benefit and hinder its
Although our nation’s government relies on the fundamentals of liberal democracy, it still has many flaws. Articles written by Francis Fukuyama share a clear message suggesting that America’s political institutions are decaying and its flaws will not be fixed unless we have good leadership within the government that yields good policies. It is still not too late to make reformations in the system. Today, US citizens share a distrust for the inner workings of our government, and through the years, there are many things that must change. Although our government is able to withstand failures right now, it may cause an expansion of problems that will cost us indefinitely. The existence of interest groups has caused an exponential increase in the elite control of the system, thus creating people’s lack of trust for the government.