The fundamental normative question underlying elite theory is whether the relative power of a group exceeds that of its relative size (i.e., whether the relative power of a group exceeds that of its relative size). Resistance to elitism includes egalitarianism, populism, and the political theory of pluralism. Elites tend to favor social systems such as meritocracy, technocracy, and plutocracy over political egalitarianism and populism. The term elitism is often used to describe a situation where power is concentrated in the hands of a limited number of people.
Those who support the elite theory of government argue that a small, rich, and powerful elite controls the government and pursues policies that benefit its members and maintains its power. Pluralist theory rejects this approach by arguing that while elite members of society are there, they do not control the government. Elitists believe that few movers and shakers can transform society and that the majority of people must vote to elect the elite to power.
Elitism is the belief that a small minority of people dominate economic elites and political planning networks in a country. The term elitism is often used to describe a situation where power is concentrated in the hands of a limited number of people. Political theorists claim that a handful of economic and political elites influence the government.
According to elite theory, the rich use their power to control an economy in ways without which they cannot move forward. The elite’s power dictates the main objectives, not the practical means or details of important government policies, and dominates the activities of the major mass media, educational and cultural organizations in society and by virtue of its power, controls the economic resources of the vast economic and financial organizations of the country. Elitism stands in contrast to populism, which demands that ordinary people, who outnumber the elite, be endowed with power and resources.
Elitism is the belief or attitude that individuals constitute an elite or select group of people of a particular descent whose views on values, high intellect, wealth, specialized education, experience, or other characteristic attributes carry the most weight and whose views and actions are most likely beneficial to society as a whole and whose extraordinary abilities, and wisdom make them governable. Elitism advocates the exclusion of large numbers of people from privileged and powerful positions. It is based on belonging or perceived belonging to a culture, subculture, or super-culture.
The term “elite” describes a person or group of people who belong to the upper class of society and whose wealth contributes to this class determination. Elites are a small group of people who have a higher status in society, in an area or activity, or who have more privileges or power than other people because of their elite status. The term “elite” refers to a person, group, or person who, as a member of the “upper class” of society, possesses wealth that contributes to the class determination of that class.
By contrast, McCain defines elitism as “not believing that you are better than others but believing that you know better than them. Academic elitism is a sense of superiority or entitlement that surrounds academic institutions, professions, and fields. The existence of this elite is necessary for a successful society because it is better for us to have people with superior breeding, intelligence, and education because their elite status allows them to make the best decisions that can be made.
Elite theory is a theoretical political science perspective by which the affairs of a community are best managed by a small group of its members; this arrangement is in modern society indeed inevitable. The belief is that humans are inherently unreliable, and therefore most decision-making power should be invested in technological elites that can design algorithms and artificial intelligence to rule the world. This power corrupts, that elite groups use their power for selfish ends instead of doing what is best for the rest of us and that it is possible to lead a healthy society without elite privileges if people of different kinds are cared for, educated, and empowered.
The problem with the Republican elite bashing is not its definition, but its contradictions. C. Wright Mills popularized elitism to describe a shared identity based on economic interests, Republicans use it with connotations of education, geography, ideology, taste, and lifestyle, such as a multi-million-dollar investment banker who works at Goldman Sachs, goes to Harvard and reads the New York Times, or an elite billionaire who grew up in Houston attended a state university and contributes to the Republican Party but nothing else. Pluralism and elitism are different theories used to explain how power is distributed between individuals and groups in society.
The inevitability of elite rule should not be taken for granted, as evidenced by the fact that ancient, medieval, and early modern political writers fought a constant battle to govern ordinary people through democracy, equating the absence of order with anarchy. Ultimately, the interests of the elites influenced the actions and compromises of the government in an attempt to please them. Measures that meet the needs of large numbers of people do not necessarily favor elite members of society.
The French word elite, which means elected or chosen in modern English, takes into account the idea that people with outstanding abilities retain their power and privileges through divine sanction. One can reject heredity or God as a source of elite status if one believes that people who grow up in a good environment and receive a good education will eventually be qualified to exercise power. In C. Wright Mills’s book The Power of the Elite, he argues that government is controlled by a combination of economic, military, and political elites.