{"id":1017,"date":"2026-08-09T18:45:57","date_gmt":"2026-08-09T13:15:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/pyq\/the-foundational-base-of-western-democracy-has-been-upsc-psir-2025-0611\/"},"modified":"2026-08-12T21:23:26","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T15:53:26","slug":"the-foundational-base-of-western-democracy-has-been-upsc-psir-2025-0611","status":"publish","type":"psir_pyq","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/psir-pyq\/the-foundational-base-of-western-democracy-has-been-upsc-psir-2025-0611\/","title":{"rendered":"The foundational base of western democracy has been"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"pq-flow\">\n<div class=\"pq-flow-h\">Flow snapshot <em>\u2014 how the answer moves<\/em><\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-fb\">\n<div class=\"pq-pill p1\"><span>Intro routes<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-ft\">\n<p class=\"pq-r\"><i class=\"pq-rt\">Route 1<\/i> <b class=\"pq-sc\">Locke<\/b> = foundational thinker of liberal democracy <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> three ideas (freedom + property + constitutionalism) joined into one design for legitimate government<\/p>\n<p class=\"pq-r\"><i class=\"pq-rt\">Route 2<\/i> western democracy = power both authorised by people and limited by law <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> both trace back to <b class=\"pq-sc\">Locke<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-fb\">\n<div class=\"pq-pill p2\"><span>Body flow<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-ft\">\n<p>state of nature: freedom + equality within natural law, not licence, vs <b class=\"pq-sc\">Hobbes<\/b> <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> natural rights (life, liberty, property) prior to government <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> consent as the only legitimacy, will of people not hereditary command <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> social contract <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> community <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> institutions by majority <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> taxation by consent\/representatives <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> [property] \u201clives, liberty and estates\u201d under the general name property <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> not material alone, inalienable rights <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> government\u2019s purpose = protect property <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> right of resistance <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> [constitutionalism] power bound by law, \u201cwherever law ends, tyranny begins\u201d <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> government as trust <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> separation of powers + rule of law <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> liberal constitutionalism <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> synthesis: constitutionalism restrains, democracy authorises, liberal democracy needs both<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-fb\">\n<div class=\"pq-pill p3\"><span>Counter-view<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-ft\">\n<p>constitutional liberalism historically distinct from democracy (<b class=\"pq-sc\">Zakaria<\/b>) <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> their union an achievement, not automatic <span class=\"pq-ar\">\u2192<\/span> without constitutional limits majority may oppress; without democracy limits stay elitist<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-fb\">\n<div class=\"pq-pill p4\"><span>Conclusion routes<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-ft\">\n<p class=\"pq-r\"><i class=\"pq-rt\">Route 1<\/i> western democracy inherits <b class=\"pq-sc\">Locke<\/b>\u2019s union of freedom, property, consent, representation, constitutional restraint<\/p>\n<p class=\"pq-r\"><i class=\"pq-rt\">Route 2<\/i> government the people authorise and the law restrains \u2014 power both authorised and limited<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"template":"","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"pyq_year":[36],"pyq_marks":[31],"pyq_topic":[51],"pyq_paper":[33],"class_list":["post-1017","psir_pyq","type-psir_pyq","status-publish","hentry","pyq_year-36","pyq_marks-20-marks","pyq_topic-democracy","pyq_paper-paper-1"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_pyq\/1017","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_pyq"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/psir_pyq"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_pyq\/1017\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4611,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_pyq\/1017\/revisions\/4611"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1017"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"pyq_year","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pyq_year?post=1017"},{"taxonomy":"pyq_marks","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pyq_marks?post=1017"},{"taxonomy":"pyq_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pyq_topic?post=1017"},{"taxonomy":"pyq_paper","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pyq_paper?post=1017"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}