CDS Polity · World Polity, Democracy and International Relations
Democracy, Totalitarianism and the State
The models of democracy, what makes a State secular, how totalitarian rule differs from ordinary dictatorship, how power is centralised or spread, and the basic words of political analysis.
Why this matters
Eight CDS questions: one EASY, six MODERATE and one HARD, three of them from CDS 2024 (I). Almost every one is a "which is NOT correct" item, so you need each idea's full description, not one word of it.
Concept 1 of 4: Models of democracy and the secular State
Thinkers agree that democracy means rule by the people, but they disagree on why it is good. One camp says the vote is a shield: it lets citizens stop the government from harming them. Another says taking part in politics is good in itself, because it makes people better citizens. Secularism answers a different question: how the State treats religion.
Definition
The models CDS asks about:
- Classical democracy (ancient Athens): citizens decide laws themselves, directly, in an assembly.
- Protective democracy (John Locke, Jeremy Bentham, James Mill): the vote is a device for protection against government. It is happy with formal equality (one person, one vote), asks for little participation and sits easily with laissez-faire capitalism.
- Developmental democracy (Jean-Jacques Rousseau, J. S. Mill): participation is valuable in itself, because it develops the citizen's mind and character.
- A secular State rejects theocracy (rule by religious authority), keeps the State separate from religion, and works to prevent religious conflict. Secularism is about the State and religion, so a State can be secular without being a democracy.
| Idea | Linked with | What it says |
|---|---|---|
| Classical democracy | Ancient Athens | Citizens make the laws directly in an assembly |
| Protective democracy | Locke, Bentham, James Mill | The vote protects citizens from government; formal equality is enough |
| Developmental democracy | Rousseau, J. S. Mill | Taking part in politics is good in itself and improves the citizen |
| Secular State | Separation of State and religion | No theocracy, no State religion, religious harmony; democracy is not part of the definitionQ CDS 2020 (II): 'a State must be democratic to be secular' was the statement that is not a character of a secular State. |
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2020 · CDS (II) 2020 — General Knowledge · Q53Hard
Example 1 · World Polity, Democracy and International Relations · Democracy, Totalitarianism and the State
Which one of the following statements with regard to 'protective democracy' is not correct?
Participation for its own sake is developmental
Protective democracy wants citizens to vote so they can guard themselves; it does not call participation essential. The view that taking part is good in itself belongs to developmental democracy (Rousseau, J. S. Mill).
Secular does not mean democratic
A secular State separates religion from the State and rejects theocracy. Whether it holds elections is a separate question, so 'must be democratic' is not part of being secular.
Concept 2 of 4: Totalitarian, authoritarian and autocratic rule
An ordinary dictator wants to control politics: no rival parties, no free elections. A totalitarian State wants to control everything: what you read, what your children learn, what you believe, even how you spend a holiday. Nothing is left outside the State.
Definition
The marks of totalitarianism (Carl Friedrich and Zbigniew Brzezinski listed six):
- an official ideology everyone must accept;
- a one-party State, usually led by one leader;
- a system of terror through a secret police;
- a monopoly of mass communication (press, radio, film);
- a monopoly of weapons;
- central control of the economy.
It abolishes civil society: no independent unions, clubs, churches or press. It reaches into personal life as well as political life. That is what makes it different from autocracy and authoritarianism, which control political power but leave much of private life alone. Standard examples: Nazi Germany and Stalin's Soviet Union.
| Kind of rule | What the State controls | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Autocracy | Political power, held by one ruler | An absolute monarch such as a Tsar of Russia |
| Authoritarianism | Political power; much of private life and society is left alone | A military regime that bans parties |
| Totalitarianism | Everything: politics, beliefs, family, work and leisure; civil society abolished | Nazi Germany, Stalin's Soviet UnionQ CDS 2021 (II): the wrong statement was that it takes political freedom but leaves personal freedom alone. |
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2024 · CDS (I) 2024 — General Knowledge · Q16Easy
Example 2 · World Polity, Democracy and International Relations · Democracy, Totalitarianism and the State
Which one amongst the following cannot be a feature of a 'totalitarian regime'?
Totalitarian rule takes personal freedom too
Taking political freedom is what every dictatorship does. Totalitarian rule goes further and controls personal life: belief, family, work and leisure.
Totalitarianism is not just another word for autocracy
Autocracy and authoritarianism control political power. Totalitarianism also abolishes civil society, so the three are not the same thing.
Concept 3 of 4: Centralisation, decentralisation and delegation
Power can sit at the top or be spread out. Keeping it at the centre makes a country act as one; spreading it lets people run their own affairs. Delegation is how a boss shares work: authority goes down, but the boss still answers for the result.
Definition
The three terms:
- Centralisation: power stays with the central authority. Merits claimed: national unity, uniformity of rules and prosperity through large-scale planning.
- Decentralisation: power is spread to lower levels. Merits claimed: liberty, participation and government close to the people. India's 73rd and 74th Amendments (1992) decentralised power to panchayats and municipalities.
- Delegation: a superior passes part of his authority to a subordinate. Authority goes downward, the superior keeps the responsibility, and the delegated work stays open to supervision and review. It is a way of dividing authority inside an organisation, not an abdication.
| Term | Meaning | Merit claimed |
|---|---|---|
| Centralisation | Power held at the centre | National unity, uniformity, prosperity |
| Decentralisation | Power spread to lower levels | Liberty, participation, local control |
| Delegation | Superior passes authority down to a subordinate | Work is divided; the superior still answers for itQ CDS 2017 (II): delegation is not an abdication of responsibility, and it never passes authority upward. |
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2021 · CDS (I) 2021 — General Knowledge · Q48Moderate
Example 3 · World Polity, Democracy and International Relations · Democracy, Totalitarianism and the State
Which one among the following is not a feature of centralization ?
Liberty is the case for spreading power
Centralisation is defended for unity, uniformity and prosperity. Liberty is the merit claimed for decentralisation, because power close to the people is harder to abuse.
Delegation goes down, never up
Delegation passes authority from a higher to a lower authority. 'From a lower authority to a higher one' describes nothing in this idea.
Concept 4 of 4: Approaches and words of world politics
Political science asks two kinds of question. One is about facts: what happens, and why. The other is about values: what should happen. A few more words keep coming back when the subject turns to the wider world: hard and soft power, globalisation, the Washington Consensus and autarky.
Definition
The terms:
- Empirical approach: studies what is, by observation and evidence. It tries to be value-free.
- Normative approach: asks what ought to be. It is value-laden by nature.
- Hard power: getting your way by threats, force or payment. States use it, and so can non-state actors such as armed groups.
- Soft power (a term of Joseph Nye): getting your way by attraction, through culture, values and ideas.
- Globalisation has economic, cultural and political sides; it is not only economic.
- Washington Consensus (John Williamson, 1989): a free-market package of liberalisation, privatisation and deregulation, with a smaller role for the State in the market.
- Autarky: economic self-sufficiency, a country trading as little as possible.
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Empirical approach | Studies what is; aims to be value-free |
| Normative approach | Asks what ought to be; value-laden |
| Hard power | Coercion by threat, force or payment; used by States and non-state actors |
| Soft power | Attraction through culture and values (Joseph Nye) |
| Washington Consensus | Liberalise, privatise, deregulate; less State in the marketQ CDS 2024 (I): calling it a policy of intervention in the market was one of the two wrong statements. |
| Autarky | Economic self-sufficiency |
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2024 · CDS (I) 2024 — General Knowledge · Q15Moderate
Example 4 · World Polity, Democracy and International Relations · Democracy, Totalitarianism and the State
Political analysis involves both normative and empirical approaches. Which of the following statements is/are correct about the two approaches?
1. Knowledge acquired through the empirical approach is value-loaded.
2. Knowledge acquired through the normative approach is objectively neutral.
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
The Washington Consensus wanted less State, not more
It asked governments to free markets, sell public firms and cut rules. A policy that seeks intervention in the market is the opposite.
Empirical is value-free, normative is value-laden
Empirical study tries to report facts without judging them. Normative study is about what ought to be, so it cannot be neutral.
Summary — formulas & gotchas at a glance
A revision cheat-sheet for the formulas and gotchas above. Click any concept name to jump back to its full explanation.
Reference tables (4)
Models of democracy and the secular State4 rows
| Idea | Linked with | What it says |
|---|---|---|
| Classical democracy | Ancient Athens | Citizens make the laws directly in an assembly |
| Protective democracy | Locke, Bentham, James Mill | The vote protects citizens from government; formal equality is enough |
| Developmental democracy | Rousseau, J. S. Mill | Taking part in politics is good in itself and improves the citizen |
| Secular State | Separation of State and religion | No theocracy, no State religion, religious harmony; democracy is not part of the definitionQ CDS 2020 (II): 'a State must be democratic to be secular' was the statement that is not a character of a secular State. |
Totalitarian, authoritarian and autocratic rule3 rows
| Kind of rule | What the State controls | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Autocracy | Political power, held by one ruler | An absolute monarch such as a Tsar of Russia |
| Authoritarianism | Political power; much of private life and society is left alone | A military regime that bans parties |
| Totalitarianism | Everything: politics, beliefs, family, work and leisure; civil society abolished | Nazi Germany, Stalin's Soviet UnionQ CDS 2021 (II): the wrong statement was that it takes political freedom but leaves personal freedom alone. |
Centralisation, decentralisation and delegation3 rows
| Term | Meaning | Merit claimed |
|---|---|---|
| Centralisation | Power held at the centre | National unity, uniformity, prosperity |
| Decentralisation | Power spread to lower levels | Liberty, participation, local control |
| Delegation | Superior passes authority down to a subordinate | Work is divided; the superior still answers for itQ CDS 2017 (II): delegation is not an abdication of responsibility, and it never passes authority upward. |
Approaches and words of world politics6 rows
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Empirical approach | Studies what is; aims to be value-free |
| Normative approach | Asks what ought to be; value-laden |
| Hard power | Coercion by threat, force or payment; used by States and non-state actors |
| Soft power | Attraction through culture and values (Joseph Nye) |
| Washington Consensus | Liberalise, privatise, deregulate; less State in the marketQ CDS 2024 (I): calling it a policy of intervention in the market was one of the two wrong statements. |
| Autarky | Economic self-sufficiency |
Watch out for (8)
- Participation for its own sake is developmental→ Models of democracy and the secular State
- Secular does not mean democratic→ Models of democracy and the secular State
- Totalitarian rule takes personal freedom too→ Totalitarian, authoritarian and autocratic rule
- Totalitarianism is not just another word for autocracy→ Totalitarian, authoritarian and autocratic rule
- Liberty is the case for spreading power→ Centralisation, decentralisation and delegation
- Delegation goes down, never up→ Centralisation, decentralisation and delegation
- The Washington Consensus wanted less State, not more→ Approaches and words of world politics
- Empirical is value-free, normative is value-laden→ Approaches and words of world politics
Test yourself on World Polity, Democracy and International Relations
15 past CDS questions from this chapter, timed at 15 minutes and marked the way the exam marks it. You see your score and every answer the moment you finish. Free to start.