Watch the video “The big ideas that changed the world: Democracy – Tony Benn (parts 1–5)” and answer the appropriate questions shortly
1. What is Tony Benn’s political experience?
2. What’s the basis for democracy?
3. What are the main lessons? What do people find hard to understand?
4. Who are and aren’t elected in Great Britain? Who does real power belong to?
5. What gives power? What’s the basis of the new American empire?
6. What discovery was made in ancient Greece? What were the limitations to the system?
7. What is the myth about Magna Carta? What did Magna Carta say?
8. What was the real turning point? What did John Ball preach? Why is he remembered?
9. What’s the myth about Parliament? When and why was the first parliament summoned?
10. What happened in 1648? What were the consequences for parliament?
11. What did Tom Payne say?
12. Who were Tolpuddle martyrs? What political movement began as a result?
13. What was the Chartists’ movement about? What lead to it? What did the Charter demand?
14. What did democracy do to the balance of power? What were the economic consequences?
15. What methods did suffragettes use? What were their aims?
16. When were women allowed to vote?
17. What does and what doesn’t the right to vote provide?
18. What was the lesson of WWII? What popular idea won the election of 1945?
19. What was a huge achievement then?
20. Struggle against colonialism:
• How big was the British Empire?
• What was it motivated by?
• What was the effect of having no democracy in colonized countries?
• What was the propaganda about the empire?
• How did nationalist movement develop across the world? What did people realize?
• How did democratic change affect society in the 1960-s and 1970-s?
• What was going on in the 1980-s?
21. Globalization:
• What were the changes it brought?
• What is funny about it?
• What organizations appeared? What are their powers and objectives?
22. Where is power moving now? What proves it?
23. What is globalization doing to people?
24. How are corporations developing their power? What might be the consequences?
25. What constitutional changes should be made in Great Britain?
26. What are the Crown prerogatives? Who exercises them?
27. What’s the real lesson from the past?
28. What does the new generation understand? What is its task?
29. Who wants democracy?
30. We are many, they are few – how can it work?
31. What are human rights compared to? How can the loaf of bread be distributed?
