A critical review of Downs, A. (1957) 'An Economic Theory of Political Action in a Democracy', Journal of Political Economy, 65(2): 135-150
Case study - 3 pages - Political science
In his seminal work “An economic Theory of Political Action in Democracy” Anthony Downs suggests that traditional economic theory is united in its exclusion of the impact of government as an economic agent. He sets out to address this issue by creating a model that sets key...
Did Poland make a success of its return to the democracy?
Case study - 3 pages - Political science
Poland, the fatherland of Nicolas Copernicus, Frederic Chopin and Jean-Paul II, is widely regarded as an icon of the emancipation of the people's democracies of Central and Eastern Europe with respect to the USSR. More still, Poland appears in the international imagery as an effective...
Democracy and Education, by John Dewey: Review
Book review - 5 pages - Literature
If it is indeed true that John Dewey's philosophy of education, as expounded in his book “Education and Democracy”, serves as the cornerstone of the American school system, it is little wonder to me that the US is known for its inventive and dynamic spirit. One of the central...
Book review: Democracy and Education, by John Dewey John Dewey
Book review - 3 pages - Literature
John Dewey was a philosopher, psychologist, and political commentator and activist, who also wrote about a whole host of other topics: art, nature, logic, ethics, and democracy, amongst others. However, most of all, he is perhaps known as an educational thinker. His ideas on education are...
The mutations of social democracy (late XIXth century- 1945): From long-term aspirations to "here and now" policies
Case study - 5 pages - Political science
In 1871, the Paris Commune, a proto-socialist attempted to form a new regime on communalistic and collectivist principles, and was savagely repressed by governmental troops led by Adolphe Thiers. Communards, if divided between patriots advocating the continuation of a revolutionary war against...
How convincing and appealing is Schumpeter's theory of democracy?
Case study - 4 pages - Political science
Joseph Schumpeter is an American economist and political scientist from the first part of the 20th C, well-known for his book Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy written in 1942 during the Second World War. In this eminent work, Schumpeter has elaborated a New Theory of Democracy,...
How convincing and appealing is Schumpeter's theory of democracy? - publié le 10/10/2012
Case study - 4 pages - Political science
Joseph Schumpeter is an American economist and political scientist from the first part of the 20th C, well-known for his book Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy written in 1942 during the Second World War. In this eminent work, Schumpeter has elaborated a New Theory of Democracy,...
The Democracy of the Chancellor in Germany
Thesis - 7 pages - Political science
The German political system, which was designed after the Second World War, is characterized by considerable stability. It strikes a balance between the four pillars of power, namely the government formed by the chancellor, the parliament (Bundestag) where party influence is exercised, the...
Democracy Ancient and Modern' by Moses I. Finley
Book review - 15 pages - Political science
"It was the Greeks who discovered not only democracy but also politics, the art of reaching decisions through public discussion, and to obey those decisions as a necessary condition for existence of a social civilization." Posed between paying homage to the great Hellenic legacy and its...
Promoting Democracy
Internship report - 8 pages - Political science
Chapter four of Payne's book deals with the notion of democracy, which is a very old one. Democracy is a process, that is to say it is in constant evolution. Today, we can say that most developed countries are democratic, and each country has followed a different path to achieve...
Exploring the relationship between democracy and MDG progress
Essay - 6 pages - Political science
The Millenium Development Goals of 2000 focused the international community on the development and health advances of the developing world. To succeed in completing these goals, massive amounts of aid have been sent to developing countries, though many conditions have been attached. Many...
Archon Fung and Deliberative Democracy: How Educated Voters can Determine Their Own Best Interests
Thesis - 5 pages - Political science
A government led by representatives of the people has seemingly become the accepted method of representing the wants and needs of the masses. Yet it is easy to see how these people in power may have more ability to influence the desire of the voters rather than allowing the voters' interest...
Do referenda really matter in local democracy? Consider the cases of France and Germany
Case study - 15 pages - Political science
Since the beginning of the nineties, local political systems have introduced more and more participatory instruments and direct democracy procedures. In Germany, the Lander included the binding popular initiatives and local referendum. In France, binding referenda were created in 1971 for...
The "pro-democracy movement" in the summer of 1989 posed the biggest challenge to the CCP regime in PRC history. What were the causes of the movement and why did it fail? What is your assessment of the prospect for China's democratization?
Essay - 5 pages - Political life and election
"We are going to take back the powers of democracy and freedom from the hands of that gang of old men who have grabbed those powers away from us". Those are the words of Wand Dan, student leader, during a speech on Tiananmen Square at the end of April 1989. Since 1984 and the acceleration...
What can Web 2.0 do for deliberative democracy?
Thesis - 4 pages - Social, moral & civic education
Democracy and political practices have already gone a long way since the birth of Internet: online campaigns, online votes, speeches on videos that can be watched over and over on video-sharing websites. Internet has transformed the reality of the political bubble in many ways and...
Capitalism, democracy and power
Thesis - 4 pages - Political science
Both James Madison and Karl Marx can be considered “democrats”; however both vastly differ on their theories and understanding of democracy and government on a wide spectrum of issues. If Karl Marx were to be asked his opinion of Madison's Federalist#10 in the post-Paris Commune...
Phillips and Young - the common critique of liberalism and the divergence of views on democracy, the equality and rights - published: 29/09/2010
Essay - 2 pages - Economy general
Our modern society has been solidly founded upon liberal principles; the Enlightenment constitutes one of the most influential political ideas in the nation-building process. Nevertheless, some criticism has emerged as our society seems to fail to provide all its citizens political equality....
Compare and contrast Rousseau's and Tocqueville's accounts of the civil function of religion in a democracy. Consider closely the respective merits of their case before offering your own assessment
Essay - 4 pages - Philosophy
Rousseau and Tocqueville fundamentally agree that the civil function of religion is to strengthen the bond that exists between the people and the law. However, the two men differ in their views on how this bond should be strengthened. Rousseau argues in favor of a new, civil religion being...
The missing link: No child left thinking: Democracy at-risk in American schools
Thesis - 4 pages - Social, moral & civic education
In “No Child Left Thinking, Democracy At-Risk in American Schools,” Joel Westheimer asks readers a simple question: if they had “stepped into a school” and observed a classroom “lesson related to [a] country's political ideals,” would they be able to tell...
International Law and Organization: Weighing the Democracy Deficit - publié le 29/09/2010
Essay - 5 pages - Political science
The history of the relationship between the United States and international law and organization has always been a love-hate one. While historically the U.S. has unquestionably been one of the strongest proponents of the development of international organizations such as the United Nations...
Islam and democracy
Thesis - 6 pages - Social, moral & civic education
Since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, political scientists and researchers in international relations have abandoned the bipolar pattern between the USSR and the United States. Following the implosion of the Soviet bloc in 1991, issues concerning the East-West conflict have disappeared,...
Jihad Vs. McWorld by Benjamin Barber. Two opposite tendencies that threaten democracy - published: 29/09/2010
Essay - 5 pages - International relations
Benjamin R. Barber is a professor of political science and director of the Whitman Center at Rutgers University. His popular books are Strong Democracy (1984), An aristocracy of Everyone (1992), and Jihad Vs. McWorld (Times Books, 1995). Jihad Vs. McWorld, his last book was published in...
Democracy in the US Constitution: Representation and the Balance of Powers
Essay - 2 pages - Constitutional law
Although the US Constitution intended to ensure the principles of equal representation and freedom of political expression, the imperfect process by which the document was created resulted in various undemocratic principles that are contrary to the spirit of the given prompt. The Constitution not...
Democracy and religion
Thesis - 6 pages - Social, moral & civic education
Religion and democracy, though resting on similar principles, have been at logger heads constantly. There are several instances in history that have depicted a constant clash between these two concepts. Democracy has battled with theocracy and has replaced in many parts of Europe....
What's wrong with the elite theory of democracy?
Essay - 7 pages - Political science
The elite theory of democracy has emerged out of two major concerns of its precursors: no theory of democracy until now has given leadership the importance it ought to have, and none has really settled the issue of whether the common man is up to the task of governing a modern and...
How and why has the adoption of free market economic policies affected the consolidation of democracy? - publié le 13/01/2009
Essay - 6 pages - Economy general
“Economic factors have significant impact on democratization but they are not determinative.” (Huntington 1991: 59). To Huntington, there is a clear link between economy and democracy as a form of regime, bond that few people could deny nowadays. Actually, this bond can be shown...
Democracy for the few (chap. 15), Michael Parenti - publié le 15/01/2009
Book review - 4 pages - Political science
Michael Parenti is a professor of political science at several American universities. He has a PhD in political science from Yale University. He is known for being a progressive activist and a provocative thinker. As such, he wrote numerous books that focused on the American nation, the role of...
Is Islam an obstacle to democracy? - publié le 12/01/2009
Thesis - 17 pages - Journalism
‘On my arrival in the United States the religious aspect of the country was the first thing that struck my attention', Tocqueville reports in Democracy in America. Even though religion cannot be considered formally as a part of the American political system, Tocqueville depicts it as...
United States versus democracy
Thesis - 10 pages - Political science
Throughout history individuals have discussed the term democracy, which has its origins in ancient Greece, and is derived from the words demos and kratos. The literal definition of this term is “rule by the people.” However, this definition is ambiguous and has allowed scholars...
Democracy: the Swedish Way
Case study - 6 pages - Political science
For years, Sweden has been considered as a well being country, with a high quality of living, safe, environmentalist, peaceful and very democratic where citizens take part in the development of their society. Swedish society, however seems to be in mutation for some decades, due to globalization,...
