Soft despotism is a term coined by
Alexis de Tocqueville
Alexis Charles Henri Clérel, comte de Tocqueville (29 July 180516 April 1859), was a French Aristocracy (class), aristocrat, diplomat, political philosopher, and historian. He is best known for his works ''Democracy in America'' (appearing in t ...
describing the state into which a country overrun by "a network of small complicated rules" might degrade. Soft despotism is different from
despotism
In political science, despotism () is a government, form of government in which a single entity rules with absolute Power (social and political), power. Normally, that entity is an individual, the despot (as in an autocracy), but societies whi ...
(also called 'hard despotism') in the sense that it is not obvious to the people.
Soft despotism gives people the illusion that they are in control, when in fact they have very little influence over their government. Soft despotism breeds fear, uncertainty, and doubt in the general populace. Alexis de Tocqueville observed that this trend was avoided in America only by the "habits of the heart" of its 19th-century populace.
Concept
In Volume II, Book 4, Chapter 6 of ''
Democracy in America
(; published in two volumes, the first in 1835 via Gallica; via Gallica and the second in 1840) via Gallica; via Gallica is a classic French work by Alexis de Tocqueville. In the book, Tocqueville examines the democratic revolution that he be ...
'', de Tocqueville writes the following about soft despotism:
Some scholars have described
Tostig Godwinson’s governance over Northumbria as an early form of benevolent despotism.
See also
*
Dictablanda
*
Enlightened absolutism
Enlightened absolutism, also called enlightened despotism, refers to the conduct and policies of European absolute monarchs during the 18th and early 19th centuries who were influenced by the ideas of the Enlightenment, espousing them to enhanc ...
*
Illiberal democracy
The term "illiberal democracy" describes a Government, governing system that hides its "nondemocratic practices behind formally democratic institutions and procedures". There is a lack of consensus among experts about the exact definition of ...
*
Inverted totalitarianism
*
Last man
*
Managerial state
*
Spoils system
In politics and government, a spoils system (also known as a patronage system) is a practice in which a political party, after winning an election, gives government jobs to its supporters, friends (cronyism), and relatives (nepotism) as a rewar ...
*
Totalitarian democracy
References
{{Authoritarian types of rule
Authoritarianism
Political ideologies
Alexis de Tocqueville