DEMOCRACY

&
IT’S
EVOLUTION
INTRODUCTION
:
▶ Democracy means people-power or rule by the people. The idea
came from the ancient Greeks who combined the words demos
(people) and krates (rule) to create the term.
▶ The term is typically used in the context of a form of
government in which all the citizens have a vote. ... In a
democratic government, the people's views influence the laws
and decisions made by the government. The development of
democracy can be traced back to ancient times, particularly to
ancient Greece.
▶ What is a democracy?

▶ Democracy is a system in which people decide

matters as a group. The term is typically used
in the context of a form of government in
which all the citizens have a vote.
HISTORY OF
DEMOCRACY :
▶ Democracy in ancient times

Around 2500 years ago in Ancient Greece, the people of the city-
state of Athens developed a way of making decisions that was
different from the autocratic ways of the past.

▶ Ancient Greece

Athens was the first city state to allow ordinary citizens access to
government offices and courts.
▶ Democracy in the Middle Ages

The Middle Ages was a period of European history from fall

of the Roman Empire (476 AD) until the fall of
Constantinople in 1453 AD. It is also known as the Dark

Although there was not a democracy directly in place the

Middle Ages, Christianity was widely followed and so
many democratic ideas were understood and followed by many
of the people. Christianity taught that all men were created
equal.
DEVELOPMENT OF DEMOCRACY
:
▶ Democracies developed throughout the 20th century.
Democracies have resulted from wars, revolutions, decolonisation
and economic circumstances. The number of democracies
continues to grow and it has been speculated that this trend may
continue in the future to the point where democratic nation-states
become the standard form of human society.
▶ Throughout history, democracies have been the exception rather
than the norm. In the present day world, about 60 percent of the
world's nations are democracies. Other nations have rulers
assigned by heredity or have used the military to take leadership
by force or rule by wealth.
 MERITS & DEMERITS OF
: DEMOCRACY
▶The merits of democracy are as follows:
1. It is a more accountable form of government
2. It improves the quality of decision making
3. It provides a method to deal with differences and conflicts.
4. It enhances the dignity of the citizens.
5. It allows us to correct our own mistakes.

▶ The demerits of democracy are as follows:

1. Instability of the government due to frequent changing of leaders.

2. Delay in implementation of plans as they are to be consulted by many

people.
3. Bad decisions taken by the leaders
4. Leads to corruption as it is based on electoral competition.
CONCLUSION :
▶ Democracy is a new thing in the world; well-developed forms of it
have been in practice less than a century. We are still learning what
it is and how to operate it. New features are continually being
offered and put on trial; no doubt there is a great deal more to be
learned about it.
▶ We would best handle it as learners, in the humble spirit of one
who seeks to know the truth. There are weaknesses in democracy:
it is best to recognize them and cope with them in rational ways.
▶ We must learn to submit to discipline, inspection, surveying,
and whatever else is necessary to enable a complicated social
organization to do its work efficiently.
THANK YOU