17.2 Forms of Government

By the end of this section, you should be able to:

  • Define common forms of government, such as monarchy, oligarchy, dictatorship, and democracy
  • Compare common forms of government and identify real-life examples of each
A photograph of Mohandas Ghandi.
Figure 17.5 After becoming the leader of the Indian National Congress, Mohandas Ghandi employed a range of nonviolent methods to gain better rights and treatment for women and poor people and especially for the independence of India. He used fasting as a form of protest, and was imprisoned by the ruling British government (Credit: Elliot and Fry/Wikimedia Commons)

Most people generally agree that anarchy, or the absence of organized government, does not facilitate a desirable living environment for society, but it is much harder for individuals to agree upon the particulars of how a population should be governed. Throughout history, various forms of government have evolved to suit the needs of changing populations and mindsets, each with pros and cons. Today, members of Western society hold that democracy is the most just and stable form of government, although former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill once declared to the House of Commons, “Indeed it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time” (Shapiro 2006).

Practice this lesson

The content of this course has been taken from the free Sociology textbook by Openstax