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Democracy

Democracy is a form of government in which ultimate power rests with the citizens. A democracy is a way of governing in which the residents of towns, cities, counties, states, and nations control their own political and social affairs. Under a democracy people are free to make decisions about nearly all aspects of their life, from voting for a political candidate to choosing a religion to practice. A concept closely associated with democracy is equality. For a society to be truly democratic, all of its members must be considered equal and share the same rights.

 There are several forms of democracy. A direct democracy is a government in which political decisions are made directly by all the citizens. Direct democracy was the government adopted by some ancient Greek city-states and, many centuries later, by New England towns in colonial North America.

A second kind of democracy is one in which citizens exercise their political rights through elected representatives. This is known as representative democracy. In a representative democracy, citizens elect candidates to make political decisions for them. A representative democracy is the form of democracy that exists in most nations, including the United States. This is so because a direct democracy is impossible in many large countries, as there is no way for all the citizens to gather in one place for decision-making purposes.

The word democracy comes from two Greek words that mean “rule by the people.” As a term for a type of government, democracy came into use during the 5th century BC in ancient Greece. In certain city-states, the whole citizen body formed the legislature. Such a system was possible because a city-state's population rarely exceeded 10,000 people, many of whom were women and slaves who had no political rights. Greek democracy was a brief historical episode that had little direct influence on the development of modern democratic practices. Two thousand years separated the fall of the Greek city-state and the rise of modern democracy.

Modern forms of democratic government were shaped largely by the ideas and institutions of Europe in the Middle Ages. During this period European rulers sought approval of their policies by consulting the different political and social groups in the kingdom. These groups were the beginning of modern parliaments and legislative assemblies—political bodies that represented the common people and acted as a check on the king's authority.

Democracy was further shaped by the ideas of the Enlightenment, a philosophical movement of the 18th century that stressed reason and scientific discovery. Out of this movement emerged the concepts of natural rights and political equality, which are the underlying ideas of democracy.

2. Скажите, соответствуют ли данные утверждения прочитанному тексту:

1. Under a democracy people are not free to make decisions about nearly all

aspects of their life.

2. A direct democracy is a government in which political decisions aren't made directly by all the citizens.

3. A representative democracy is possible in all countries.

4. As a term for a type of government, democracy came into use during the 5th century BC in ancient Greece.

5. Greek democracy had little influence on the development of modern democratic practices.

6. Modern forms of democratic government were shaped largely by the ideas Europe in ancient times.

7. The beginning of modern parliaments and legislative assemblies were different political and social groups in the kingdom.

8. The concept of political equality emerged from Enlightenment.

3. Подберите к определениям соответствующие слова:

1. democracy A type of the city in the past

2. equality B positive feeling

3. right C period in history

4. Middle Ages D something you are allowed to do / have

5. direct E to be greater than a number or amount

6. exceed F system of government

7. city-state G straight

8. approval H state of being equal

4. Заполните пропуски в предложениях следующими словами:

1. People should have an … choice of programmes.

2. A lot of people have died fighting for … of women.

3. He had more power than any ... of Spain until Franco.

4. He believed that all man and women were … .

5. A … is a person who belongs by law to another person and has to obey and work for him / her.

6. He decided to … a more radical approach to the problem.

7. A part of a government consisting of people who have been elected to make laws is called an … .

8. A … is a city that in the past joined with the area around it to form an independent state.

5. Передайте содержание текста в 4 предложениях.