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The Vastness was Hinderance to the American Giant Essay

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Passage I.

One significant quote from passage one is, “The American giant was seen by many, both at home and abroad, as a place too large to be effectively governed as a unit. Problems of transportation and communication were staggering” (Collier & Collier, 2007, p. 19). This quote is significant because it presents the vastness of the United States as an important variable in the discussion of the Constitutional Convention of 1787. The vastness of the United States caused debates in creating the U.S Constitution, in terms of commerce, transportation and in human relations (Collier & Collier, 2007, p. 19). Dangerous geographic regions and long travel times hindered people from traveling in the United States (Collier & Collier, 2007, …show more content…

384). Madison never believed that the government could be run by the people (Collier & Collier, 2007, p. 384). Madison felt that education, wealth, and “quality of mind,” gave him and others the right to rule (Collier & Collier, 2007, p. 22)
Alternatively, James Wilson, also a nationalist, believed that the people could run their own government (Collier & Collier, 2007, p. 285). Why did they think slightly differently? James Wilson was an immigrant from Scotland, grew up poor, had to work and developed different values than a man such as James Madison (Collier & Collier, 2007, p. 280). Contrastingly, Madison was born in Virginia, had a wealthy father, and did not have to work for a “good portion,” of his life (Collier & Collier, 2007, p. 34). Madison and Wilson learned different values while growing up. While in the College of New Jersey, Madison’s education taught him that “…human problems could be solved through the application of reason; and governments should be the instrument of the governed” (Collier & Collier, 2007, p. 34). Wilson learned that the power to rule came directly from the people and that the people could delegate and withhold as much power as they wanted (Collier & Collier, 2007, p.285). Both of these ways of thinking and others were beneficial in creating the U.S Constitution because it made sure no one way of thinking dominated the creation of the U.S Constitution

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