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An important step in the formation of a country is choosing its system of government. While monarchy is the dominant form in fantasy, there are many other options. Each has its own strengths and weaknesses but they bring something to the table that no other does. Of all of them, a fantasy democracy is an interesting choice to use for a nation in the genre. The same applies to a fantasy republic.
A fundamental concept of the fantasy democracy is that it derives its power from the people. In other words, a country’s citizens votes in elections to choose who will lead them. This is unheard of in fantasy, for the idea of democracy isn’t a thing most people think of.
Breaking it down, a fantasy democracy has several variants. You have direct, which is where the people vote on everything. There’s also representative, in which citizens vote to choose who will represent them in both the legislative and executive branches. This is commonly known as a republic. Finally, there’s parliamentary where voters select people running on a party label to represent them in parliament, who in turn elects the Prime Minister, the leader of their country.
A democracy can play an influential role in worldbuilding. It advocates the idea of freedom, which runs antithetical in a world dominated by monarchs and autocrats. This can cause an intense clash between the two as people in these countries desire that freedom for themselves though they must contend with rulers who’d like to keep them under their thumbs.
Using a fantasy democracy in the story opens up many exciting possibilities. A force for good, the protagonist works hand-in-hand with its leaders to spread freedom to a world crying out for it. It can then become a rallying cry to spearhead great change towards a better tomorrow.
This is the ninth article in the fantasy governments series. For more — or any other of the many ones we have! — they’re available on our blog page.
A democracy sounds so simple, doesn’t it? A government duly elected by the people living within a nation and yet it’s so much more than that. A strong proponent of freedom, it sends a message to the rest of the world that power doesn’t belong in the hands of a select few, rather everyone has an equal stake.
When it comes to the branches of government, a democracy is most democratic, seeing that people elect candidates running for both legislative and executive positions for terms that last a certain period of time. This ensures that they have a vested interest in selecting candidates who wish to make the country better than it was before. In some cases, they vote on who’ll be members of the judiciary, though in many places, the legislative branch holds votes on them.
A fantasy democracy tends to adopt the concept of federalism, splitting its power evenly among different levels. Local governments are most responsive to the citizens, since people have the power to choose who will lead them whether they live in urban or rural districts. State or provincial governments focus on issues that affect the whole state/province. And finally, the national government is where the leaders of the country make decisions that affect everyone living within.
Sadly, it has two glaring weaknesses. Firstly, it’s chaotic, seeing that different leaders pursue different policies. Sometimes these policies can conflict with each other. There is no firm sense of continuity from one ruler to the next, since different parties alternate being in power. This makes it difficult for a democracy to reach its long-term goals.
Secondly, it’s susceptible to corruption which can cause it to fall. A disinterested populace can result in the rise of unscrupulous characters to key positions of power in which they can sell them in exchange for money or something else. Instead of working for the common good, these officials focus solely on enriching themselves. Over time, the democracy rots from within and it’s only a matter of time before it collapses due to the pervasive corruption.
The republic is the most popular form of democracy. The reason why is because it’s a representative government, one where people vote on who will represent them in both the legislative and executive branches. This includes positions for both the state/provincial and national governments. People choose others to represent them since they have businesses and families to tend to, seeing that they can’t spend all their time voting on everything.
A fantasy republic is led by one person, though the title he goes by varies by world. In one realm, he could be simply known as the President whereas in another, he can be either the Chancellor or Prime Minister. Regardless of which title he goes by, he can only be in power for a certain period of time. Many places restrict it to one or two terms, though the number of years a term entails of differs from world by world. If he’s able to, he can run for reelection though depending on how the country’s faring under his tenure, he can win or face a humiliating defeat.
Next up is the legislative branch, which can be either bicameral or unicameral. People from across the nation vote on who will represent them there. The winners serve a term in office, though they can run for reelection. While serving, they can pass laws or vote to confirm nominees for the judiciary.
Like a democracy, the concept of federalism is integral to a functioning fantasy republic. Within a republic, power is distributed among the national, state/provincial, and local governments. And they are all held accountable to the people, who decide whether to keep them or kick them out in the next election.
A republic is easily beset by squabbling factions. As different parties jockey for power, collaborating for the greater good fades, making passing legislation more and more difficult due to intense partisanship. Only strong, determined leaders can bring the factions to heel and force them to put aside their differences to work on making things better for the country and set the fantasy republic on the right path.
Democracies are rare in fantasy, which isn’t surprising, considering that monarchy is the dominant form of government. Thought it may be in the minority, it wields a great deal of influence and said influence can be felt all over the world. It’s because it’s associated with the idea of freedom.
While a monarch exercises varying degrees of control over everyone living within his realm, a fantasy democracy places no restrictions on what people can do. It encourages them to follow their dreams freely without governmental inference. It only asks that they follow the laws of the land.
This sparks a culture clash between countries that have monarchs and those with democracies. The idea of doing what you want, when you want anytime without answering to the people in charge is a powerful motivator, which encourages people to move to these places to do what they’ve always wanted to do. As such, democracies tend to be viewed suspiciously by others with non-democratic governments.
The idea of freedom sends a chill down the spines of monarchs and autocrats, who do not want their people to become free. Instead, they double down, working overtime to prevent that message from reaching their people.
Consequently, kingdoms and other nations band together to eliminate the upstart democracy or funnel resources to dissidents within, hoping to stage a coup that replaces it with a government more favorable to them. While they have many different interests and goals, ensuring that the democracy no longer poses a threat to them is something they have in common.
How do you bring a fantasy republic or another style of democracy in the story? Interestingly enough, it’s rich in storyline potential! How you use it depends what type of tale you want to tell.
Since democracy is associated with freedom, which in turn is considered good, this type of government stands on the side of the protagonist. A force of good, it champions freedom to a world suffering under the yoke of control and it works with the hero to spearhead profound change in these lands for the better.
The fantasy republic does so either overtly or covertly. Wise leaders understand that spreading freedom to places that know little of it will undoubtedly meet with great resistance, especially from leaders loath to lose their power, and sanction underground activities with the long-term goal of bringing it to fruition. This is particularly true if they don’t wish to provoke a diplomatic crisis with their neighbors.
Here, the protagonist dutifully carries out missions for the democracy, slowly but surely giving people a taste of freedom that will spur them to push for greater change in their countries. However, he must contend with those loyal to the regime in power, who views him as a threat and endeavor to take care of him.
On the other hand, showing how a democracy is falling is a sad but riveting tale. The collapse is gradual, usually over an extended period of time. Freedoms are lost as the creeping specter of control takes over. Politicians care more about making deals favorable to them and getting rich instead of solving the nation’s problems.
As he surveys the land around him, the protagonist sees signs of decay, from growing lawlessness to people increasingly more concerned about themselves instead of helping each other. Corruption spreads from the capital to cities across the country. The hero cannot help but wonder if it’s too late to stop the slide into oblivion or if there’s still time to turn things around.
A fantasy democracy is rare. There aren’t many in a genre filled with many monarchs. However, when one appears, it becomes a major player in the world. As kings and dictators scheme to destroy it, it works to spread freedom far beyond its borders.
While a democracy has several variants, one thing they all have in common is that it’s messy. Bringing different people and ideas together is certain to spark conflict but in the end, that conflict winds up making it stronger, for they made a deal where everyone got something out of it.
Out of the different types of democracies, the fantasy republic is the most popular. Its citizens vote on certain days to select candidates for office, who in turn represents them. Legislators and executive office-holders are held accountable to the voters and whether they win re-election is the voters’ verdict on how they did their jobs while in office.
A fantasy democracy has many enemies in worldbuilding. Other countries, fearful of the message of freedom reaching their people, try to destroy it militarily or economically. The democracy works to make a better world, not just for itself but for everyone else and freedom is its most powerful ally.
Featuring a democracy in the story gives you many options to choose from. You can have it standing alongside the protagonist, working to enact change to a world long resistant to change. If you wish to go another way, you can show the tragic fall of a fantasy republic into an empire or autocracy.
Are you ready to create a fantasy democracy or that changes the world you’re building for the better?
If you decide to bring democracy to your world, you can’t go wrong with using a fantasy republic.
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Sunfire
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