Is monarchy more or less effective than democracy?

 

            In the world, there are many types of government. The two types of government seen the most are monarchies and democracies. A monarchy government is “governmental system in which the head of state is a single person”. (http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-monarchy.htm). A democratic government system is “a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections.” (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/democracy).  The difference between a monarchy and a democracy is that when the people get more input to the government, they have a greater feeling of being free. In a monarchist government, there is only one person deciding the rules and the people do not get to choose anything. A Monarchy government is not as effective as a democracy when looking at evolution, stability, use of power and control.

            In monarchy government systems, there is only one person that can decide what happens in the nation. The only way for a new person to be in charge is if that person dies. Usually someone in his or her family takes over being in charge. Although it is a completely different person ruling, they would most likely have the same views as the previous head. This makes it hard for monarchies to adapt and evolve in the modern times. In democracies, the people are always choosing new leaders to govern the nation. The leaders work together to fix old and new problems that they are faced with. For example, in the United States, as different men and women were elected for many jobs, rules way of government changed. The Constitution is those rules written “in stone” technically. It was not meant to be changed originally, but once the world changed, it had to too. Those changes are called amendments. (http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html). In monarchies, there is not much room for dramatic change and evolution. In democracies, change happens every day.

            In governments, laws are made to keep order and control of the people. Monastic governments do keep order and control most of the time, but not necessarily for the good of the people. For example, King Henry VIII abused his power. He wanted a divorce from his wife, because she did not bear a male child for him. The Catholic Church would not allow this, so he used his power to create his own church: The Church of England.  (http://www.luminarium.org/renlit/tudorbio.htm). During the same time, Martin Luther was also rebelling against the church. He posted the 95 Theses. (http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/luther95.txt). In democracies, unnecessary actions and laws are unlikely to take place. This is because there is not just one person that gets to decide everything. In order for a new law to be made, many people must approve it and pass it along to the next. Democratic governments allow the right amount of laws to be made, and no one person can change things due to their own needs. In monarchies, anything can happen if the king or queen says so.

            Monarchies and democracies are very different styles of government. Monastic governments consist of one leader who governs the entire country. That one person is the sole government. In democratic governments, the people get to choose what happens. They elect leaders who then work together to govern the nation. Democracies are more effective because most of the people are on the government’s side. Most agree with what is happening and support the decisions of the elected officials. The people living in countries with monarchies have no choice to be on the side of the government or not. Overall democracies balance the power between many people and give the average person a chance to input their opinions to the government.

Primary Sources

"The United States Constitution - The U.S. Constitution Online - USConstitution.net." Index Page - The U.S. Constitution Online - USConstitution.net. Web. 31 May 2010.

FORDHAM.EDU. Web. 09 June 2010. .

Secondary Sources

"Democracy - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary." Dictionary and Thesaurus - Merriam-Webster Online. Web. 01 June 2010. .

"The Life of King Henry VIII (1491-1547). Biography of Henry Tudor, King of England." Luminarium: Anthology of English Literature. Web. 01 June 2010. .

Logic, Your. "What Is a Monarchy?" WiseGEEK: Clear Answers for Common Questions. Web. 01 June 2010. .

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