Discussion Questions
Chapter One
| 1. | Give a broad and a narrow definition of democracy. What are the arguments in favor of each? |
| 2. | According to Julius Nyerere, the former president of Tanzania, the struggle for freedom in the Third World is primarily a struggle for freedom from hunger, disease, and poverty, and not so much a struggle for political rights and liberties. Is that true? |
| 3. | In 1968, a progressive military junta took power in Peru and did away with the democratic political system. The military government went on to launch much more far-reaching measures against poverty and poor living conditions for the mass of people than had been seen under the previous, democratic government, which was dominated by an elite. Which regime is more democratic: the one that upholds a democratic political system that serves mainly an elite or the one that does away with the democratic political system in order to promote the struggle for freedom from hunger, disease, and poverty? |
| 4. | Discuss the assertion that only a capitalist system can provide the necessary basis for democracy. Which elements in capitalism can promote democracy and which can impede it? |
Chapter Two
| 1. | Some conditions favor the rise of democracy more than others. What are the most favorable economic, social, and cultural conditions for democracy? Why is it that democracy may emerge in places where the conditions for it are adverse? |
| 2. | Are there common factors that help explain the recent surge toward democracy in many countries, or must democratization in different parts of the world be explained in different ways? |
| 3. | Outline the phases in the transition toward democracy according to the model described in this chapter and apply the model to your own country. Is your country a consolidated democracy? How much time has passed since the move toward democracy began in your country? What light does the experience of your own country shed on the process of transition to democracy in other countries? |
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Questia, a part of Gale, Cengage Learning. www.questia.com
Publication information:
Book title: Democracy and Democratization:Processes and Prospects in a Changing World.
Edition: 2nd.
Contributors: Georg Sørensen - Author.
Publisher: Westview Press.
Place of publication: Boulder, CO.
Publication year: 1998.
Page number: 137.
This material is protected by copyright and, with the exception of fair use, may not be further copied, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means.
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