In the 1700s, the American government was one of the first nations to have a democratic revolution. With America being a successful democratic country after its revolution, it drew attention domestically and internationally. Domestically, the creation of the new Constitution, after the failure of Articles of Confederation, raised questions in representation and federal power, which led to the creation of The Federalist Papers by the James Madison, Alexander Hamilton and John Jay. Decades later, Alexis de Tocqueville, a French nobleman, visited the United States and later wrote a book called Democracy in America. These two pieces of literature were written about five decades apart, but they both emphasize the structure of the American government …show more content…
and how it is successful. The Federalists focused on formal institutions that strengthen American government, such as James Madison’s discussion regarding factions and an extended republic; while Tocqueville explored informal institutions and practices, like the role of family and women and the power of religion in a democratic state. All of these features led to the success of American democracy because the institutions and practices established equality amongst human beings and political engagement in society.
With the new constitution written, the debate over it arose quickly. In the light of the debate, the Federalists wrote The Federalists Papers to present arguments why this new document would enforce an effective government, unlike the Articles of Confederation. A major concern addressed was representation in a country with a large population. Citizens were concerned that they would have difficulty expressing individual opinions and influencing the government. James Madison wrote “Federalist Paper 10” in order to address the concerns in regard to the democratic political process. In American population at the time were deeply concerned with the issue that majority faction present. Madison proposed that by “extending[ing] the sphere … [there is] a greater variety of parties and interests … [and] it [is] less probable that a majority of the whole will have a common motive to invade the rights of other citizens” (Madison 78). Essentially, Madison argues that with a more diverse group of people, there will always be a need to negotiate and compromise in order to reach an answer that is satisfying to all interest parties. As an advocate for a large
population, Madison promotes the creation of an extended republic, in which the actions made by the governed would be well-reasoned and thought through deliberately. With an extended republic, more people from different interest groups can get involved in the political process, which is the foundational principle of a democratic nation. Madison’s claim regarding “representative be[ing] chosen by a greater number of citizens in the large … [rather than] the small republic” (Madison 77) would create a more equal representation of each person through people electing delegates. At the same time, Madison’s point regarding extended republic exemplifies that the sphere of political engagement in society would be larger, as a greater number of citizens can serve as representatives. Furthermore, in an extended republic, the winner of an election would not have absolute control of the government or the power to impose laws to benefit his/her causes. An extended republic decentralizes the majority faction so that one person or group cannot monopolize the whole government. Decentralization of the government would give American government more democratic stability as well as bringing people closer to being equal and having equal opportunities socially and politically. While the Federalists focused on institutional success for democracy, Alexis de Tocqueville focused on the informal institutions and practices that made American democracy a success, and unified the American people and society. Tocqueville defined democracy not as a system of customs and laws, but rather social conditions or values that are impactful to the private life of individuals such as thoughts, opinions or different sectors of life, like family. Coming from an aristocratic family, Tocqueville’s observation regarding the role of family and women in America greatly differed from the way of life in France. In European nations, the authoritative relationship that exists between father and son does not disappear as the son grows older. As Tocqueville said, “society rules the father who rules his sons … [so] he is granted a political right to hold authority” (Tocqueville 679) over his son, which illustrates how the father always control the family and there is no sense of social equality that democracy emphasizes on. On the other hand in democratic America, Tocqueville does not speak of the dominant relationship of the father over the son but instead the son becoming equal with his father as the son enters manhood. For Tocqueville, “in the eyes of the law, the father is simply an older and richer citizen than his son” (Tocqueville 679), which exemplifies the concept of equality of father and son being on same level in society. By being on equal level socially encourages the son to participate in society politically and socially because the actions of the son are not controlled by the father. In addition to the father and son relationship, the role of women in democratic society was another informal contribution that founded the success of American democracy. Like the father and son relationship, in aristocratic France, the “women are often given a cautious, reserved, and almost cloistered education” (Tocqueville 685) but once they are in a marriage, they are helpless without guidance because their education did not prepare them. However, Tocqueville describes women in America as “never fall[ing] into the bonds of marriage as … a trap laid for her simplicity or ignorance” (Tocqueville 687) because the women are well-educated with good judgment and she knows the expectation of her role; hence why the woman “endures her new state [of marriage] because she has chosen it” (Tocqueville 687). In democratic America, marriage is mutual a relationship between the man and the woman and they are equal in the private sphere. Besides the role of women in marriage, they play a larger role in putting morality to work in society. Tocqueville said, “no free societies ever existed without morals and … morals are made by women. Therefore, everything connected with the status of women, their habits, and opinions, has great political interest” (Tocqueville 684). A democratic nation needs morality and women are the makers of morality in all societies. Even though women are equal with men in a relationship, women are not permitted in the public sphere to project her morality. Therefore, Tocqueville highlights the idea of using the bond of family for a man to bring the influence of the woman into the public affairs. Tocqueville’s arguments about father and son, man and woman, and morality of women are principles of democracy that ensure a fairness in equality for the people in society and participations privately and publicly. Continuing the focus on morality, Tocqueville discusses morality in relations to religion. Tocqueville described, “religion as the guardian of morality, morality as the guarantee of law and the security that freedom will last” (Tocqueville 56), which highlights how religion protects the liberty that people have in a democratic system. Additionally, Tocqueville wrote, “this civilization is the result [of] … two quite distinct ingredients which anywhere else have often ended in war but … Americans have succeeded … to meld together … the spirit of religion and the spirit of liberty” (Tocqueville 55). Tocqueville’s point emphasizes on the ideas that religious concepts have led to the fundamental basics of how to people ought to respect other human beings and liberty is what consents the equality among citizens in a democratic nation. Furthermore, religious faith plays a role in the creation of criminal laws as many of the laws were based on the Bible. States, such as Connecticut, utilized “biblical texts” as “penal legislation” (Tocqueville 49) in society. Tocqueville believes that religion contributes to the success of democracy, yet at the same time, he is worried that religion and state mixing would create conflicts. By separating the two, there will be more freedom in political engagement as well as giving people more equal stand in society without the criticism of different religious belief. While the Federalists and Alexis de Tocqueville focused on different characteristics of the success of democracy, they all connected back to the idea of equality in a civilization and the participation of the society. James Madison’s argument on factions and an extended republic in “Federalist Paper 10” focuses on equality and societal involvement. Similarly, Tocqueville’s arguments of family role and women and religious morality both reinforce the theme of creating a more equal society and getting the citizens to take part in political and social issues. These formal and informal practices and institutions lead to the success of America’s democracy and a model for other nations.
Federalist 10 is an article by James Madison and by far is one of the most famous. In the article Madison stressed that the strongest factor in the Constitution is that it establishes a government capable of controlling the violence and damage caused by factions. Factions are a group of individuals who gather together in a union or political party and are against government control. They are sometimes groups called ‘sub-factions’ and they were technically a party within a party. Factions try desperately to advance their agenda, special economic interests, and political opinions. Factions work against the public interest and infringe upon the rights of others. To put an end to factions is inevitable. Madison summed it up best by saying as long as men hold different opinions, have different amounts of wealth, and have different amount of property, they will continue to associate with those similar. In other words, those who had large amounts of money and owned land/property were the typical individuals who would be in factions.
The enlightenment ideas affected politics for both the French and the American peoples through the form of government and individual rights. Thinkers such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau, believed in the individual right of man as a citizen of a sovereign nation. In 1789, Marquis de Lafayette used Rousseau and other free thinker’s ideas to draft his Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen to the National Constituent Assembly in France (http://www.pbs.org/marieantoinette/revolution/america_france.html). This established universal rights for individuals that always existed at all times. The document shows many similarities to American documents such as the declaration of Human Rights in the U.S. Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights in the Constitution. For instance, they all show a relationship through the declaration of individual rights such as free speech and freedom of religion. However, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen focuses more on individualism while American documents focus more on a community “We the People” (http://www.pbs.org/marieantoin...
The Federalist, No. 10, by James Madison is a clear expression of views and policies for a new government. Madison was a strong supporter and member of the Federalists whose main beliefs favored the Constitution. They also believed that the Articles of Confederation needed to be rewritten so that a new central government would control the power of the states.
Supporters of the Constitution called themselves Federalists, a name referring to a balance of power between the states and the national government. They argued for a federal system as in the Constitution. James Madison claimed that the Constitution was less dangerous that it looked because the separation of powers protected people from tyrannical abuse. The Federalists compile a group of essays, known as The Federalist Papers. In No. 51, Madison insisted that the division of powers and they system of checks an balances would protect Americans from the tyranny of centralized authority. He wrote that opposite motives among government office holders were good, and was one of the advantages of a big government with different demographics. In No. 10, he said that there was no need to fear factions, for not enough power would be given to the faction forming people; thus, they wouldn't become tyrannical. Hamilton, in No. 84, defended the Constitution with the case that the Constitution can be amended by representatives, who are there to represent the citizens' interests.
Tocqueville was a Frenchman who was interested in America and its democratic design. He spoke of his observations about America in his book, Democracy in America. Tocqueville’s attitudes towards Americans seem to be very appreciative. He saw democracy as a perfect balance between freedom and equality. Yet, while he is appreciative, he is also quite critical of some of the effects of democracy in America. Tocqueville believed that there were some faults with democracy and states them in his book.
From 1860 to 1877, the American people faced several constitutional and social issues. For example, the after-effects of the Civil War, power struggle between the state and federal government, issues with civil liberties and suffrage, the rights of free black men, and resentment of white men, have all become critical issues. These critical issues needed immediate resolutions. Therefore, resolutions were created to solve these problems and those resolutions called for new constitutional and social developments that have amount to a revolution.
For both Tocqueville in his “Democracy in America” and Locke in his “Second Treatise of Civil Government”, liberty holds a place of paramount importance in the pantheon of political values, specifically those in relation to democratic and republican systems (though Locke does not explicitly demand a republic as Tocqueville does) . From Tocqueville’s belief in the supremacy of liberty over equality , to Locke’s inclusion and conflation of liberty with property and life itself in his natural rights , liberty plays the crucial role of linchpin in both author’s political philosophy. Though this belief in the centrality of liberty is found in both Tocqueville and Locke, they each derivate liberty from fundamentally disparate sources, and thus hold
Democracy in America has been a guiding principle since the foundation of the country. Many over the years have commented on the structure and formation of democracy but more importantly the implementation and daily function within the democratic parameters that have been set. Alexis de Tocqueville was a French political thinker and historian born July 29, 1805. He is most famously known for his work Democracy in America. Democracy in America has been an evolving social and economic reform, and has continually changed since it’s founding.
In The Federalist Papers by James Madison, Madison discuses various aspects of government and how the government must be organized in order to better represent the people. In The Federalist, No. 10 Madison discusses the nature of political factions and parties and how they can affect the government and its practices. The Federalist, No. 51 discusses instead how the government being in branches helps maintain liberties and better protect the American people. The topics mentioned in The Federalist Papers continue to explain and structure our government today.
The Federalist wanted to ratify the Constitution while the Antifederalist despised the idea entirely. Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay eventually compiled 85 essays as the Federalist Papers. These supporters of the Constitution believed that the checks and balances system (a system in which the different parts of an organization (such as a government) have powers that affect and control the other parts so that no part can become too powerful )would allow a strong central government to preserve states' rights. They felt that the Articles of Confederation was too weak and that they were in need for a change. The Articles of Confederation had “errors” that needed to be corrected argued the Federalist. Ratifying the Constitution lead to an improved more advanced country.
Madison begins perhaps the most famous of the Federalist papers by stating that one of the strongest arguments in favor of the Constitution is the fact that it establishes a government capable of controlling the violence and damage caused by factions. Madison defines that factions are groups of people who gather together to protect and promote their special economic interests and political opinions. Although these factions are at odds with each other, they frequently work against the public interests, and infringe upon the rights of others.
In Federalist Paper Number 10, Madison sees Factions as being inevitable. Humans hold differing opinions and are all living under different circumstances, and are likely to group together with those most like themselves. Some groups of people will attempt to work together to benefit themselves even if it goes against public interests and even if it infringes upon the rights of others. In the Federalist Paper Number 10, Madison feared that Factions could be detrimental to the common good and in order to minimize the effects and control the effects of Factions, the best form of government would be a large republic. According to Madison, to minimize the negative consequences of Factions, they must either be controlled or the causes of Factions must be removed. Since he describes the causes of Factions being the different interests and living conditions between individuals, it can be argued that this solution is not very feasible. It would be impossible to make sure every single person makes the same amount of money, has the same goals, and even goes through similar life experiences. The greatest source of Factions, the deepest and biggest cause of Factions, according to Madison, is the unequal distribution of property. The acquisition of property or lack of property creates class divisions the foster differing interests. Since it is not possible to
During the construction of the new Constitution, many of the most prominent and experienced political members of America’s society provided a framework on the future of the new country; they had in mind, because of the failures of the Articles of Confederation, a new kind of government where the national or Federal government would be the sovereign power, not the states. Because of the increased power of the national government over the individual states, many Americans feared it would hinder their ability to exercise their individual freedoms. Assuring the people, both Alexander Hamilton and James Madison insisted the new government under the constitution was “an expression of freedom, not its enemy,” declaring “the Constitution made political tyranny almost impossible.” (Foner, pg. 227) The checks and balances introduced under the new and more powerful national government would not allow the tyranny caused by a king under the Parliament system in Britain. They insisted that in order achieve a greater amount of freedom, a national government was needed to avoid the civil unrest during the system under the Articles of Confederation. Claiming that the new national government would be a “perfect balance between liberty and power,” it would avoid the disruption that liberty [civil unrest] and power [king’s abuse of power in England] caused. The “lackluster leadership” of the critics of the new constitution claimed that a large land area such as America could not work for such a diverse nation.
In Federalist No. 10, James Madison stresses that “measures are too often decided, not according to the rules of justice and the rights of the minor party, but by the superior force of an interested and overbearing majority.” Madison philosophized that a large republic, composed of numerous factions capable of competing with each other and the majority must exist in order to avoid tyranny of majority rule.# When Federalist No. 10 was published, the concept of pluralism was not widely used. However, the political theory that is the foundation for United States government was the influential force behind pluralism and its doctrines.
The American Revolution stirred political unity and motivated the need for change in the nation. Because many Americans fought for a more balanced government in the Revolutionary War, they initially created a weak national government that hampered the country's growth and expansion. In the Letter from Abigail Adams to Thomas Jefferson, Mrs. Adams complained about the inadequacy of power that the American government had to regulate domestic affairs. The Articles of Confederation was created to be weak because many had feared a similar governing experience that they had just eliminated with Britain. The alliance of states united the 13 local governments but lacked power to deal with important issues or to regulate diplomatic affairs. Congress did not have the power to tax, regulate trade, or draft people for war. This put the American citizens at stake because States had the power to refuse requests for taxes and troops (Document G). The weakened national government could not do anything about uprisings or small-scale protests because it did not have the power to put together an army. The deficiencies of the confederation government inspired the drafting of the American Constitution. The document itself embodied the principle of a national government prepared to deal with the nation's problems. In James Madison's Federalist Paper, he persuades the American public to adopt the Constitution so that the government can protect humans from their nature and keep them out of conflicts.