Philosophical Essence of Democracy

Democracy is the product of the politico - economical systems of human society and is always evaluated from the point of view of the populace representation and their role. Continuously, to the democracy, are devoted countless number of theories which intent to explain the causes of the birth of democratic regimes and the power of civil society within such social systems. But in the philosophical plane, require answers a number of questions related to its origin and need, such as: Why did mankind leave the natural state of freedom when it was governed only by the instincts and the law of the jungle? What factors were imposed on the natural state of freedom and called to the stage of history the need for democracy? According to philosophers who refer to the determining role of elites, society is perceived as a single pyramid, at the head of which stands the elite of society itself. Philosophers, who refer to the role of pluralism, represent society as a number of billiard balls which collide with one another and with the governance itself, by producing the respective policies. Both views can be discussed. A society can be seen in the shape of a pyramid led by its elites. Robert Dahl called this kind of democracy a "polyarchy", which means leaded by the leaders of various groups who have managed to have an understanding with one another, while another scholar Arend Lijphart has called it "constitutional democracy". He argues that elites of every important group reach an agreement to run society under constitutional rules. This study provides a detailed analysis of the notion of "Democracy" seen from the point of view of elitism and pluralism. The breadth and depth of the subject consists of an intricate initiative in itself, for the fact that no study, old or new, or even all of the studies together on this subject, with all the depth and attentive care, can be complete, let alone conclusive, when they try to shed light on the etymological roots of humanity's democracy, on the abysses and the depths that it needs to overcome at present, as well as in its future. The study also puts forward a number of concerns related to the implementation of democracy as a theory and as a practice.