TYPE OF MAIN FEATURES
GOVERNMENT
SYSTEM
Monarchy a government in which the
supreme power is lodged in
the hands of a monarch who
reigns over a state or
territory, usually for life and
by hereditary right; the
monarch may be either a sole
absolute ruler or a sovereign -
such as a king, queen or
prince - with constitutionally
limited authority.
Aristocracy the best form of government,
provided that the ruling class
was composed of those most
competent to govern and that
they exercised their power for
the good of all and not for
their own selfish interests.
ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES EXAMPLE
 It brings about a  It might lead to a An example of a monarchy is that
solid government. poor leadership. which presently rules over Britain and
 It can lead to  It does not allow is headed up by the Queen Elizabeth
leadership stability. democratic II. A monarch’s power can vary, and
 It offers more legitimacy. the monarch can fit one of three
savings for the  It might lead to categories: a crowned republic, a
government with the having a leader who constitutional monarchy, or an
absence of elections. might not be as absolute monarchy.
 It allows for a non- serious as needed.
partisan leadership.  It lacks democratic
 It encourages accountability and
respect for the ruler. liability.
 It invests much
power and fame to a
single individual.
 As ther are a  The decisions in this The Brahman caste in India, the
selected people who form of government Spartiates in Sparta, the eupatridae in
rule this are made by a few Athens, the patricians or Optimates in
government, the people or a Rome
processing of things privileged class.
in this system is  This can sometimes
much faster. prove to be
 The rate of incorrect.
corrupitoin can be  The chances of
comparitively lower. rebellion are higher.
 There is no single

Polity is defined as a constitutional
government, in which the
masses are granted
citizenship and govern with
everyone’s interest in mind,
one of the best forms of
government.
person rule.  There also exists
 Hence, errors in rascism in some
making laws will be aristocracies.
avoided.
 justification  that the rule of The most preeminent polities today
of slavery  master over slave is are Westphalian states and nation-
contrary to nature states, commonly referred to
 Condemnation
and therefore unjust as nations.  Kurds in Iraqi
of usury.
Kurdistan are parts of their own
 some people are so separate and distinct polity. However,
 In practice much
inferior and brutish they are also members of the
slavery is unjust that it is better for sovereign state of Iraq which is itself
them to be a polity, albeit one which is much less
controlled by a specific and as a result much less
master than to be cohesive.
left to their own
devices.
Tyranny is a cruel, harsh, and unfair
government in which a person
or small group of people have
power over everyone else.
 Law making is also
 Since the  There can be Belarus, Cuba, Iran, Myanmar, North
government is under unreasonable use of Korea and Zimbabwe as examples of
the rule of s asingle power and control. outpost of tyranny, Rice characterized
person, the time  There is a single the broader Middle East as a region
taken for things to person in power. of tyranny, despair, and anger.
process in the  This leads to
system is lesse. inequality.
 Tyranny is about
faster since there is oppressive rule. This
little or no is not an ideal case
opposition. for citizens

Oligarchy a government in which
control is exercised by a small
group of individuals whose
authority generally is based
on wealth or power.
 Power is centralized  The ruling class Though Russian President Vladimir
within a leadership controls policies and Putin denies it, he functions as part of
team, rather than legislation, and ends a wealth-based ruling oligarchy that
involving everyone in up with much more had its beginnings in the 1400s.
every decision. wealth than the rest
of society.

 People can  As the ruling class

participate in gains more
activities, expertise, it tends to
relationships, and exclude outsiders,
work while the group making it tough for
in power handles the people to break in.
larger issues of the
society.  It prevents new
perspectives and

Democracy a form of government in
which the supreme power is
retained by the people, but
which is usually exercised
indirectly through a system of
representation and delegated
authority periodically
renewed.
diversity.
 An oligarchy strives  It can limit available
to keep the status supplies to certain
quo, which breeds classes, fix prices,
conservatism instead provide selective
of taking on risky benefits, and restrict
ventures. the economy by
hindering basic
supply and demand
 It can foster functions.
creativity and
innovation because  When people feel
people are free from they can't join the
worries about ruling class, they
running society. may no longer feel
compelled to follow
the rules set by the
ruling class, leading
to rebellion,
disruption, and war.
 Democracies give  Democracy is In the traditional cultures of the
people a chance to ineffective unless Arabian Peninsula, rulers were
become personally voters educate expected to hold a regular majlis, or
involved with their themselves on sitting, in which people were invited
government. governing decisions. to speak with the ruler, ask questions,
 The structure of a and offer advice. The ruler still had
 The structure of
democracy works to absolute power in theory, but in
democracy depends
reduce issues with practice it had to be wielded within
upon the will of the
 exploitation. majority. the framework of the majlis, or the
 A democracy people would lose respect for the
encourages equality  Democracy can ruler and it would be harder to
encourage mob rule.
in a positive way. maintain power.
 Democracies usually  The cost of
grow faster democracy is
economically than something that many
other forms of people don’t realize
government. exists.

  There is more  Democracy requires

consistency available more time to
in democracy than implement changes.
other government
structures.