One comparison that can be made about Direct and Representative Democracy relates to the theme of practicality. Source A states that “Direct Democracy is seen as being practical at a local level” and was used in Ancient Greece in the city of Athens but more recently in the small cantons of Switzerland. Source B states that Representative Democracy is better for larger countries as “legislation can be made and passed effectively and practically in modern society”. This shows us that Direct Democracy is more practical for small population sizes whereas Representative Democracy is more practical for the modern, larger sizes of population. 

A second comparison that can be made about Direct and Representative Democracy relates to the theme of Information. Source A states that “it creates a more informed electorate and politically knowledgeable group of citizens” which was the case in the Scottish Independence Referendum. Source B states that the majority of the electorate don’t have an interest or effort to participate in policy or important decisions so Representative Democracy allows elected representatives to dedicate their time solely to policy and scrutiny of information on behalf of the people. This shows that Direct Democracies allows people to become engaged and informed before voting within political decisions, however Representative Democracies take this opportunity away from the people and into the hands of representatives which could be more effective as they can dedicate their whole time to researching and learning, something a normal citizen with a job couldn’t do. 

A third comparison that can be made about Direct and Representative Democracy relates to the theme of Legitimacy. Source A states that because all residents can make political decisions through expressing their own views, “decisions are likely to be accepted as fair” and people will accept the outcomes of decisions. Source B states that “voters legitimise the decisions made by representatives and if people do not like the decisions that are being made then they can vote the party out at the next election”. This shows that Direct Democracy can be seen as more legitimate because of the direct engagement that people have in political decisions whereas, in a Representative Democracy, people don’t have the same amount of engagement or input which could reduce the legitimacy of the decisions as they are relying on their representatives to act on behalf of their views. 

To conclude, the case for Representative Democracy is stronger. Representative Democracy allows better legislation due to having a small group of experts allowing for more practicality within larger populations while also keeping it legit through regular elections making sure the government are being held accountable. This makes it a superior political system to use instead of Direct Democracy.