- •Московский государственный институт международных отношений (Университет)
- •Москва росспэн 2001
- •Редакционный совет:
- •Text 2: different views of politics
- •Ciifiry
- •Conflict
- •Anti-politics
- •General will
- •Text 4: concepts, models and theories
- •In effect
- •Interrelationships
- •Invalid
- •Absolutism
- •Totalitarianism
- •Liberal democracy
- •Liberal democracy
- •1Л. 14. Translate the text into English система правления
- •1» Assume forms
- •Text 2. Regimes of the modern world
- •Communism
- •Theocracy
- •I. Lord Advocate, to challenge
- •Communism
- •Text 3: полиархия
- •Text 4: classical typologies
- •Vocabulary:
- •Text 1: what is political ideology?
- •Text 2: liberalism and conservatism
- •Text 3: патерналистский консерватизм
- •Text 4: the end of ideology?
- •Democracy Text 1: Conceptions of democracy
- •Text 1: conceptions of democracy
- •Text 2: Democracy in practice: rival views
- •In (under) such circumstances
- •Text 2: democracy in practice: rival views
- •Developmental democracy
- •Protective democracy,
- •Text 3: демократия
- •Text 4: defining democracy
- •In many ways
- •The changing balance of the global economy.
- •In this respect
- •Text 2: towards world government
- •Ex. 6. Paraphrase the underlined parts, using the topical vocabulary
- •Text 4: understanding global politics
- •V.X. 17. Comment on:
- •Text 1: political socialisation
- •Политическая культура
- •Text 2: legitimacy and political stability
- •Text 3: почему происходят (to occur) революции?
- •Text 4: legitimation crises
- •Text 1: theories of representation
- •Text 2: electoral systems
- •I simple plurality system
- •I consult the text to do exer-
- •Text 3: функции выборов
- •Text 1: party politics
- •It cannot but take account of sth
- •Text 2: party systems
- •V.X. 8. Translate the sentences into English, using the topical vocabulary
- •Text 3: функции партий
- •Text 4: the decline of parties?
- •Incline sb to sth
- •View of sth
- •I dismiss the idea
- •Text 1: theories of decision-making
- •Education and manipulation of public opinion
- •Text 2: system performance
- •Shaping public opinion
- •Text 3: стадии в процессе политики
- •Text 4: democracy performance
- •9. The End of Empire?
- •Intergovern-mentalism
- •Internationa 1 law
- •Incrementalism
- •Intraparty democracy
- •Contents
- •Издательство «Российская политическая энциклопедия» (росспэн)
- •129256, Москва, ул. В.Пика, д. 4, корп. 2. Тел, 181-01-71 (дирекция); Тел./факс 181-34-57 (отдел реализации)
to
undertake something to refer to something to encompass something
coup
d'etat
to
share something
to
be redundant
to
confine sth to something
In effect
Interrelationships
Invalid
предпринимать что-либо сослаться на что-либо охватывать, заключать что-либо в себе, включать в действии/действительности, фактически взаимоотношения государственный переворот разделять, пользоваться совместно
недействительный, не имеющий законной силы быть лишним
сводить(ся) к чему-либо, ограничиваться чем-либо
-
Work in pairs. Do you think the following statements are true or false?
-
Before examining how different systems have been classified, it is necessary to reflect on both what is being classified and why such classifications have been undertaken.
■ A social system is, in effect, a sub system of a larger political system.
-
A regime is a 'system of rule' that endures despite the fact that governments come and go.
-
All systems of classification have their drawbacks.
-
The political contours of the new world are quite unclear.
-
Different systems of classification have tended to prioritize different sets of criteria.
-
Discuss/check your considerations with the rest of the class.
SCAN reading: look the text through to find the answers to the true/false statements.
TEXT 1, TRADITIONAL SYSTEMS OF CLASSIFICATION
A. Before examining how different systems have been classified, it is necessary to reflect on both - what is being classified, and why such classifications have been undertaken. First, what is 'government', and how do governments differ from 'political systems' or 'regimes'? 'Government' refers to the institutional processes through which collective and usually binding decisions are made. A political system or regime, on the other hand, is a broader term that encompasses not only the mechanisms of government and the institutions of the state, but also the structures and processes through which these interact with the larger society.
A political system is, in effect, a subsystem of the larger social system. It is a 'system' in that there are interrelationships within a complex whole, and 'political' in that these interrelationships relate to the distribution of power, wealth and resources in society.
A regime is therefore a 'system of rule' that endures despite the fact that governments come and go. Whereas governments can be changed by elections, through dynastic succession, as a result of coup d'etats and so on, regimes can only be changed by military intervention from without or by some kind of revolutionary upheaval from within.
B. Why classify political systems?
The interest in classifying political systems stems from two sources. First, classification is an essential aid to the understanding of politics and government. The second purpose of classification is to facilitate evaluation rather than analysis. In other words, understanding is closely tied up with normative judgements: questions about Svhat is' are linked to questions about 'what should be'.
All systems of classification have their drawbacks, however. As with all analytical devices, there is a danger of simplification. The classification of regimes under the same heading draws attention to the similarities that they share, but there is a risk that the differences that divide them will be ignored or disguised. A related problem is a possible failure to see that a phenomenon may have different meanings in different contexts. For instance, in Japan and throughout East Asia, the state' may be different in kind and significance from 'the state' as generally understood in the context of the West classification process. Finally, all systems of classifications have the drawback that they are necessarily state-bound; they treat individual countries as coherent or independent entities in their own right. Although this approach is by no means invalid, it is now widely viewed as incomplete in the light of the phenomenon of globalization.
C. Since the late 1980s, the regime-classification industry has been in a limbo. Older categories, particularly the three worlds' division, were certainly redundant, but the political contours of the new world were far from clear. The image of a Svorld of liberal democracies'
Notion
I Government
2.
A
political system or regime
1
Confucius
(551
B.C.
-
479 B.C.)
-
Chinese
philosopher, founder of traditional Chinese education.
However, one of the difficulties of establishing a new system of classification is that there is no consensus about the criteria upon which such a system should be based. No system of classification relies on a single all-important factor. Nevertheless, particular systems have tended to prioritize different sets of criteria. Among the parameters most commonly used are the following:
-
Who rules? Is political participation confined to an elite body or privileged group, or does it encompass the entire population?
-
How is compliance achieved? Is government obeyed as a result of the exercise or threat of force or through bargaining and compromise?
-
Is government power centralized or fragmented? What kinds of check and balance operate in the political system?
-
How is government power acquired and transferred? Is a regime open and competitive, or is it monolithic?
-
What is the balance between the state and the individual? What is the distribution of rights and responsibilities between government and citizens?
-
What is the level of material development?: How materially affluent is the society, and how equally is wealth distributed?
-
How is economic life organized? Is the economy geared to the market or to planning, and what economic role does government play?
-
How stable is a regime? Has the regime survived over time, and does it have the capacity to respond to new demands and challenges? Nevertheless, five regime types can be identified in the modern world:
-
Western polyarchies
-
Postcommunist regimes
-
East Asian regimes
-
Islamic regimes
-
Military regimes.
AFTER-READING activity
♦ Read the text in more depth to do the * After-reading exercises'.
Ex. 1. Comprehension check
A.
-
What is the difference between 'government' and a 'political system'?
-
What is 'political' in a political system?
-
Through which means can a regime be changed?
B.
-
Name two reasons for classifying political systems.
-
All systems of classification have their drawbacks. Name three of them given in the text.
-
Give an example of different interpretations of the same thing in different contexts in the text.
C.
-
The regime classification industry has been in a limbo lately. Find facts accounting for it.
-
Give your set of priorities of the parameters listed in the text for classification of a system.
Ex. 2. Terminology
Match the notions with the definitions:
Definition
An all-encompassing system of political rule, that is typically established by ideological manipulation and open terror and brutality. A form of democratic rule that balances the principle of limited government against the ideal of popular consent.