Forms of government
BIG Ideas 1) What are the differences between monarchies, republics and dictatorships? 2) What are the advantages and disadvantages of unitary, federal and confederal systems?
Using the internet define each of the following. Monarchies Feudalism Absolute Monarchy Constitutional Monarchies Republic Classical Republic Democracy Dictatorship Autocracy Oligarchy Authoritarian Totalitarian Despotism Unitary System Federal System Confederal System Presidential System Parliamentary system
Major Form #1 = Monarchy Monarchy – government headed by a king or queen Feudalism – political system based on the rule of local lords Absolute Monarchy – kings and queens have absolute power Constitutional Monarchy – kings and queens have little power (Queen of England)
Major Form #2 Republics Republic – a government ruled by officials that are appointed by the people Classic republic – type of republican government in which ALL adults participated in government (practiced by ancient Greeks) Democracy – rule by the people
Major Form #3 Dictatorships Dictatorship – power in the hands of a single person or SMALL group of people Autocracy – ALL power in the hands of one Oligarchy – Rule by few Authoritarian – “catch-all” term for dictatorships Totalitarian – rule over ALL aspects of people’s lives (ex. Religion, politics, social culture)
How Governments Share Power (or don’t) Federal System – National and local governments share power Unitary System – National government has complete power over everything (no powers for local governments) Confederal System – power is shared by independent states/Limited or no power for national government
Presidential and Parliamentary Systems Presidential System – government led by a president (executive) that is separate from the legislative branch Parliamentary System – head of state is appointed by the legislative branch (Parliament)
Group Activity Groups of 2 Copy the following table into your JOURNAL and come up with 2 advantages and 2 disadvantages of: Unitary System Federal System Confederal System
Advantages Disadvantages Federal Confederal Unitary