week 4 oligarchy Flashcards
Why democracy is inconceivable without organizations?
the principles of organizations is an absolutely essential condition for the political struggle with the masses
organization is the weapon of the weak in their strugle with the strong
Delegetion and democracy
it is impossible to self govern in large group of people therefore we need delegation
system in which delegates represent the mass and carry out their will
has to be left in the hands of few people
ideally the chief is the servant of the masses
division of labour
As organizations get complex need for division of labor and leadership
Artificial creation of elite which divides the leaders from the masses
leaders becoming independent
Technical specialization requires expert leadership
So, power of determination becomes one of the attributes of the leader
Then authority moves from the hands of the masses to the hands of the leader alone.
Leaders free themselves from the mass and become independent of its control
definition of oligarchy
Therefore, organization implies tendency to oligarchy
OLIGARCHY—rule of the few form ofpower structurein whichpowereffectively rests with a small number of people
the relationship between oligarcy and democracies
Organizations become divided into minority of directors and majority of the directed
With the advance of organization, democracy declines
İncrease in the power of leaders is directly proportional with the extension of the organization
Where organizations are stronger there is a lesser degree of democracy
hierarchy in oligarcies
A rigorously defined hiearchical bureacracy
Hiearchy emerges as the outcome of technical conditions
Essential for the machine
Oligarchical and bureacratic tendency of organization is a matter of technical and practical necessity
leadership
But for democracy the first appearence of leadership marks the beginning of an end
Transformations of leaders into a closed cast (because of the necessity of long tenure and expertise)
İndependence of the leaders increases with their indispensibility
ideology of power
Oligarchies eventually develop the “ideology of power” aimed at emphasizing the need for internal harmony as the best way to face the menaces coming from of external enemies
All organizations that increase in size and complexity require the participation of dilligent full-time experts on the decision-making process. Such individuals tend to become “irreplaceable”
The dichotomy between “internal democracy” and “organizational efficiency” becomes more evident.
efficiency requires a strong and professional leadership which can only come to the detriment of internal democracy
how do they gain power
by controlling who has access to information, they can centralize their power
with power comes the ability to reward loyalty, the ability to control information about the organizations, and the ability to control procedures therefore control the decision making
representative democracy is a façade legitimizing the rule of a particular elite, and that elite rule, which he refers to as oligarchy, is inevitable.
The formation of oligarchies within democracies is the outcome of organic necessity, and consequently affects every organization
Democracy is a treasure which no one will ever discover by deliberate search. But in continuing our search we can produce a fertile ground for it to grow.
