Democratization in America Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Democratization in America - Essay Example One had to either be a land proprietor or had a means to pay tax in order to vote. The voting system was not attractive either, there was no use of papers or ballots, likewise features like campaigning for that leadership were not present. Voting was done through shouting or word of mouth. This later came to change in most states. 1830 to 1840 was a period that most states gave permission to whites to vote, so long as they paid taxes and had at one time involved themselves in the militia. When the political atmosphere started getting better most states gave full rights to the whites to vote and by civil war, only one start had the old system. The civil life of the people has not always been the same. Analysis can take place from the 18th century to 21st century courtesy of Michael Schudson in the book, the good citizen. A flash to 18th presents to us a society that was more involved in politics and political knowledge than ever before. During this time, the people had perfected the art of defying leadership and rules of the elites (Schudson, 230-236). In the 19thcentury, politics was at its best, but the people were involved in a more vigorous central role. It was a period that had strong organizations with political undertones. The local organizations focused on attracting the masses through huge meetings that had the characteristics of rewards and entertainment just to attract the masses to buy into the agenda of a party. Politics at this period was not ideology inclusive but popularity has driven (Schudson, 141-142). At the end of the 19th century looking into the beginning of 20th century, the state of things evolved further, this period had moved away from partisan politics that had earlier resigned. These times had two states of affairs, one known as the dominant model and the other as non-dominant. The former harboured reforms, efficiency in management, in-partism in the fourth estate, and a government expertise while the latter harboured and advocated for a citizenry participative approach to the making of policy and political involvement.  Ã‚