Everything about Mobocracy totally explained
Ochlocracy (
Greek:
οχλοκρατία or
okhlokratía;
Latin:
ochlocratia) is
government by mob or a mass of people, or the intimidation of
constitutional authorities. In
English, the word
mobocracy is sometimes used as a synonym. As a pejorative for
majoritarianism, it's akin to the
Latin phrase
mobile vulgus meaning "the easily moveable crowd," from which the term "mob" originally derives.
As a term in
civics it implies that there's no formal
authority whatsoever, not even a commonly-accepted view of
anarchism, and so disputes are raised, contended and closed by
brute force −
might makes right, but only in a very local and temporary way, as another mob or another mood might just as easily sway a decision. It is often associated with
demagoguery and the rule of passion over reason.
Terminology
The term appears to have been coined by
Polybius in his
Histories (6.4.6). He uses it to name the 'pathological' version of popular rule in opposition to the 'good' version, which he refers to as democracy. There are numerous mentions of the word "ochlos" in the
Talmud (where "ochlos" refers to anything from "mob," "populace" to "armed guard"), as well as in
Rashi, a Jewish commentary on the Bible. The word is recorded in English since 1584, derived from the French
ochlocratie (1568), which stems from the original Greek
okhlokratia, from
okhlos "mob" and
kratos "rule, power, strength"
An
ochlocrat is one who is an advocate or partisan of ochlocracy. It can also used as an adjective
(
ochlocratic or
ochlocratical).
Whether or not the decisions enforced by a mob are
good or
bad is another matter entirely. The
threat of
mob rule (not unlike the term
tyranny of the majority) is often invoked -often rhetorically- against a democracy by those who oppose its majoritary decisions, sometimes fearing oppression of the needs or freedoms of minorities if democratic government isn't efficiently restrained by protections given to individuals under the
rule of law, sometimes concerned that demagogery may manipulate the mob and force popular currents of thought onto
minority groups without respect for their or the individual's rights. There are also some who wish to see more power assigned to a certain
ruling minority.
A mob, however massive, and regardless of claims to speak for 'the people', may or may not be representative of the (often silent) majority in a large society (which usually practices
indirect democracy). It may be composed of a specific segment of the population interested in a specific issue, and drawn from a limited geographical space or it may be a representative popular majority.
Mobs in history
Historians often comment on mob rule as a factor in the
rise of Rome and its maintenance, as the city of
Rome itself was large − between 100,000 and 250,000 citizens − while the
aristocracy and even
military was very small by comparison to the citizenry. With weapons also being crude, the military force didn't exist that could have dealt with a revolt from the larger populace. There was a constant need to
keep people fed, distracted, and in awe of the power of the state. Those who could do this, ruled not only Rome, but the whole of the
Roman Empire.
Lapses in this control often led to loss of power, or even the loss of heads, of officials − most notably in the reign of
Commodus when
Cleander unwisely used the
Praetorian Guard against a mob which had come to call for his head. As
Edward Gibbon relates it,
The people... demanded with angry clamors the head of the public enemy. Cleander, who commanded the Praetorian Guards, ordered a body of cavalry to sally forth and disperse the seditious multitude. The multitude fled with precipitation towards the city; several were slain, and many more were trampled to death; but when the cavalry entered the streets their pursuit was checked by a shower of stones and darts from the roofs and windows of the houses. The foot guards, who had long been jealous of the prerogatives and insolence of the Praetorian cavalry, embraced the party of the people. The tumult became a regular engagement and threatened a general massacre. The Praetorians at length gave way, oppressed with numbers; and the tide of popular fury returned with redoubled violence against the gates of the palace, where Commodus lay dissolved in luxury and alone unconscious of the civil war... Commodus started from his dream of pleasure and commanded that the head of Cleander should be thrown out to the people. The desired spectacle instantly appeased the tumult... |
This followed a previous incident in which the
legions of Britain had demanded and received the death of
Perennis, the prior administrator. The mob thus realized that it had every chance of success.
Mobs used to affect policy
During the
French Revolution, the mobs in
Paris played a similar function, but were more carefully manipulated by political leaders who sensed that they'd the power to dispose of
monarchy entirely, as they did, eventually setting up a
representative democracy (which in turn fell to
Napoleon's model of semi-
constitutional monarchy).
The modern theories of
civil disobedience and
satyagraha bear some resemblance to mob rule and its mechanics. Certainly it's quite frightening for large numbers of people, even peaceful ones, to be marching and shouting common demands, if one is charged with the uncomfortable task of refusing them. If Roman guards, facing
crucifixion for disobedience, could be swayed by mobs, it's obviously possible also to sway modern
police even in a
police state. The
1986 EDSA Revolution in the Philippines, the
Velvet Revolution in former
Czechoslovakia, and the resistance to
the attempted military coup in the
Soviet Union in
1991 that led to the
collapse of that state, are situations where it's possible that it was the "mob" which won the day due to defections by authority.
Whether by intent or by circumstance, non-violent well-organized assemblies often degrade into unruly mobs. Provocation from within (such as an
agent provocateur) and from external forces is often a factor, but crowd dynamics often spontaneously emerge to confront the peaceful intentions of those who rallied a crowd. Published treatises on civil disobedience theory almost always encourage practitioners to establish order within their ranks, but civil disobedience groups often face difficulty in controlling those they recruit. Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr., a renowned advocate of orderly demonstrations of group power,
died after he returned to
Memphis to restore order to demonstrations he'd inspired but which had turned violent on his previous visit.
Other mobs
The term "mob" is also sometimes used to describe
organized crime. Since it's relatively simple for the criminal element to exploit public strife, for example by
looting, or grabbing power by means of
fraud, there's some resonance in that "mob rule" can be described as having power held by those people who exploit or create mobs by leading them into violence.
In certain places with a dubious record of
representative democracy, physical control of
polling stations is a form of mob rule that determines who wins: whoever can bring out more supporters to keep the opposing
political party out, wins.
Political privacy is very often nonexistent in this kind of condition, so retribution against defectors is easy.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Mobocracy'.
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