We The People Unit 1 Essay

Classical republicanism and natural rights philosophy had a profound impact on the way the Founders viewed government. Though the two are inherently different, the Founders used aspects from both to construct a well-rounded view of government. Many of the aspects they felt were important were ideals that were not present in the monarchy in Great Britain. Classical republicanism focused strongly on promoting the common good of the people. Natural rights philosophers,such as John Locke, kept the idea of ensuring and protecting individual rights as a focal point. The Founders took elements from classical republicanism such as small, uniform communities, citizenship and civic virtue, and moral education. In conjunction with these aspects, the Founders also were influenced by aspects of natural philosophy, including individual rights, popular sovereignty/government by consent, limited government, and human equality. The Founders drew upon the aspects from both classical republicanism and natural rights philosophy to create a government that would benefit the people and uphold natural rights while not being overbearing.

The Founders realized that there were disadvantages to having a Republican government. Some were that a Republic works best in small communities with little diversity in morals and ideas. James Madison was disturbed that a Republic would naturally lead to factions, and factions were not a thing that the founders sought after at all. “Republic government works best in small communities.” (“We the People, 24”). “People in a large diverse republic would naturally divide into factions...” (24). Since the colonies were large and diverse, factions were bound to happen in a Republic. The founders tried to find another possibility to eliminate factions but they found no better ideas. Thus the founders created a Republic and factions in the

The only way to manage faction is to remove its causes and to control its effects. By removing its causes Madison believes that liberty will be destroyed, or that by giving every citizen the same opinions, passions, and interests, would be impossible because people can never all be the same. Madison wanted the United States to be a republic, a form of democracy in which power is vested in representatives, so there will be a greater number of citizens represented and we will also be able to have more control over the factions effects.

Richard Hofstadter examines the political beliefs of the founding fathers in the first chapter of the American Political Tradition. Ideas thought about by most Americans to be the center of our organization, our founders viewed liberty, democracy, and property, as evil. The composition can be depicted to be vicious as well, because liberty, democracy, and property are linked to the United States Constitution.

James Madison feared factions affect to American society and its government that can only be solved with an extended republic. Factions allowed people to oppress one another based on their views and beliefs on government and the only way to remove factions completely is taking away people’s liberty. Madison believed that taking away one's liberty is as worse as the reason to do so, which will only abolish not one’s rights but political life itself. An extended republic will allow people to experience and be a part of new interests and opinions as well as abate the creation of majority factions.

1. James Madison argued that a large republic is more conducive to liberty in comparison to a small one mainly due to the fact that a large republic offers more unity. As such, it would be easier to guard citizens against any violations on the liberties of each individual. Additionally, a large society ensures diversity in opinion from people of different cultural backgrounds, thereby ensuring proper self-governance. According to Madison, a united country would be the best way to improve equality and ensure that all individuals are protected regardless of their race, ethnicity or minority status. In a large republic, there are larger groups of individuals from different backgrounds who offer significant representation to all communities in the republic. Therefore, it is easier to understand different perspectives thereby ensuring that people’s liberties are upheld and that the minority groups are not oppressed.

The Founding Fathers and Puritans came to America for one reason, to protect their only rights as humans. They wanted a change that was never going to happen living in England under a British monarchy. Both these groups wrote a written framework for government ( Mayflower Compact and Constitution). The government would be run by the people and would take all considerations

After the American Revolution, the formation of a new government was precedent. Federalists were afraid of disorder, anarchy, and chaos; the unchecked power of the masses, and sought for the constitution to create a government distant from popular passions. On the other hand, antifederalists were more concerned about the dangers of concentrated power. Equally, the antifederalists opposed the constitution because of the obstacles between the people and the exercised power, which is why federalists supported it. Alexander Hamilton was the Leader of the federalist party while Thomas Jefferson was the leader of the Republican party. Overtime Jefferson and Maddison created the Democratic-Republican party. Jefferson also created the Declaration of Independence while Madison was influential regarding the constitution and the Bill of Rights. In result to Jeffersons significant role in society, he became the third President of the United States and appointed Maddison as his Secretary of State. After Jeffersons presidency, Madison was elected and stepped into office. The characterization of the Jeffersonian Republicans- being strict constructionists and opposed Federalist ideals- and the Federalists- being broad constructionists- had proven to be accurate when analyzing Republican outlooks. Outlooks involving the checks and balances system, individual liberties, and a nonintrusive government with a fluid constitution.

The republican vision was more than just a dream of self-governance. The founders were very cognizant of what it would take to maintain the republic in the long term. As McCoy states, “…they assumed that a healthy republican government demanded an economic and social order that would encourage the shaping of a virtuous citizenry.” Founders, such as Jefferson, felt that virtue was needed to help sustain the republic. According to Jefferson one way to achieve virtue was creating a political economy based on land. By working on the land, one can learn to be self-reliant which would lead to a more virtuous individual. The ideas that an agrarian life was a virtuous one was not unique to the founders. Indeed, some have noted that Adam Smith praised agrarian life for the mental skill it developed, and warned of the dangers of industrial labor on the mind . Surely, it couldn’t have just been the mental benefit that agrarian life promised, that motivated founders like Jefferson. The fact that England was mostly an industrial, mercantilist economy gave credence to the desire of some of the founders to prevent the newly formed nation from going down the

Republicanism is a term that has been viewed differently during the development and early days of the United States of America, as well as into present day (1). However, the portion of republicanism that was widely agreed upon is that it is in opposition to a monarchy (the form of government used by Great Britain) and the country is instead ruled by the people. Having once been a part of Great Britain, the Founding Fathers (i.e. Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and many others) agreed that they were opposed to having a monarch ruling over America, and instead wanted the people to rule. The Founders, in the beginning were skeptical of a direct democracy due to the fear of a majority taking over, nonetheless, they still wanted

Founders thought the republican form of government was the best. Organizers analyzed the historical backdrop of governments. They appreciated the Roman Republic out of all the types of governments. This is which the republican government came to be otherwise called the Rome Government. A republican government comprises of agents who are responsible to be capable of helping the whole, entire country instead of having certain groups of wealthy or favorite people getting treatment. According to the founders, the Republican Government was a law to keep decency and freedom in the nation.

Although the Founders believed that a republican government came with many benefits, it also brought many disadvantages. These included large populations, a high degree of diversity amongst the people, and the creation of factions would lead to the downfall of a republican government. In small and identical communities, the citizens could decide what the common virtue would be without any problem. This would be more manageable compared to a territory with an abundant and distinct population. Diversity between religion, wealth, and beliefs would result in varied opinions, making it more challenging to agree on what is right for the people. Factions would be another method in which a republican government could potentially fail. According to

Blame is a leery, yet powerful concept. Everyday people pass judgements and force the responsibilities of certain faults onto one another for a variety of issues. When a problem occurs, people prefer to accuse others as the cause, then sit back and wait for the condemned to construct a solution for them. This is particularly relevant within the United States’ political system. Jeff and Jane, two political news anchors, were discussing such problems, such as, all-time low approval ratings and lack of growth in regards to the United States Congress. Jane claims that the people working within Congress are corrupt and are the core cause of these problems, and if Congress were to reset with brand new faces then these problems could be solved. Jeff, on the other hand, argues that the system of Congress as a whole is the origin of issues and no matter what people are involved in Congress it will always be inefficient and unapproved. Both Jeff and Jane raise interesting points regarding who or what they believe is to blame for the troubles The United States and her Congress has seen recently; however, I contend that both are incorrect in where they have placed their blame. It is not the system in which Congress is ran, nor is it the people involved within the system that is to blame; rather, the responsibility falls on the American citizens themselves.

Founding fathers such as Madison and Hamilton were fearful of the right to revolt. They believed that with such a new government people would seek to tear apart their country and all their hard work.

     The nations first effort at republican government was The Articles of Confederation. It brought the opportunity for each state to preserve their individual sovereignty. It also gave birth to the revolutionary generations apposition to a strong centralized government with extensive powers. The Confederation did bring good things but even so, it