Summary Of Madison's View On Human Nature

Madison’s views about human nature: power and majority rule? Why did the Framers prefer repr+esentaTve democracy over direct democracy? Human nature: ±he implicit conclusions Madison draws from his condiTonal (if-then) logical statements are plain. Men are not angels, and therefore government is in fact necessary. Moreover, men are not always governable by angels or God. ±he people follow their passions and leaders su²er from ambiTon for power. ±hus, internal and external controls on government are necessary because men are governed by men? Majority Rule: A³er recognizing the need for a majority in rouTne votes, he asked when "a majority... united by a common interest or a passion cannot be constrained from oppressing the minority, what remedy can be found...?"

He went on to express his hope that the newly forming naTon would be large enough, with enough "di²erent interests and parTes...

that no common interest or passion will be likely to unite a majority of the whole number in an unjust pursuit." In the areas of civil and religious rights, he predicted, "If [one] sectform a majority and have the power, other sects will be sure to be depressed." ±his fear grew out of the American colonies' experience with 18th-century European naTons where religion and state were synonymous. (Prior to arriving as a new delegate in New York, in the Virginia House of Delegates, he had succeeded in disestablishing the Anglican Church from its role as the o´cial religion and defeated a bill that would have supported it with a tax on all Virginia ciTzens.) Direct Democracy over representaTve. No. 10 addresses the quesTon of how to guard against "facTons" (more speciµcally the "violence of facTons"), or groups of ciTzens, with interest’s contrary to the rights of others or the interests of the whole

community. Madison saw facTons as inevitable due to the nature of man - that is, if men hold di²ering opinions, have di²ering amounts of wealth, and own di²ering amount of property, they will conTnue to form alliances with people who are most like them, and they will someTmes work against the public interest, and infringe upon the rights of others. ±hus, he quesTons how to guard against those dangers Federalist No. 10 conTnues a theme begun in Federalist No. 9; it is Ttled, "±he Same Subject ConTnued: ±he UTlityof the Union as a Safeguard Against DomesTc FacTon and InsurrecTon". ±he whole series is cited by scholars and jurists as an authoritaTve interpretaTon and explicaTon of the meaning of the ConsTtuTon. Jurist have frequently read No. 10 to mean that the Founding Fathers did not intend the United States government to be parTsanand others have argued that given Madison's clear understanding that parTsanship is inevitable, he suggests that a representaTve republic form of government is more e²ecTve against facTons than a direct democracy