NTA UGC/NET/SET/JRF Political Science Paper 2 - 2024, 2nd Edition, Includes 2023 Solved Papers

CHAPTER 13

Democracy

INTRODUCTION

The term democracy and the classical conception of democratic rule are firmly rooted in Ancient Greece. The core element of democracy is self-rule. The Greek historian Herodotus used the term ‘democracy’ in the fifth-century BCE to mean ‘rule by the people.’ This term is derived from a combination of two Greek words: ‘demos’, meaning ‘the people’ and ‘kratien’, meaning ‘to rule.’ However, the modern understanding of democracy, on the other hand, is dominated by the sort of electoral democracy that has emerged in the industrialized West, generally referred to as liberal democracy. Democracy is not just a form of government, it’s a way of associated living in which we respect and tolerate diversity and share power ...