Tyranny Dbq Essay

Aristotle once said, “ Every man should be responsible to others, nor should any one be allowed to do just as he pleases; for where absolute freedom is allowed, there is nothing to restrain the evil which is inherent in every man. ” In May of 1787, 55 individuals drifted into Philadelphia in response to a call for a Constitutional Convention. The dilemma facing the group of men was the existing constitution, The Articles of the Constitution it wasn’t working, the constitution wasn’t strong enough to hold a nation. Together they theorized a way to separate the powers so no one has more power than the rest. This was America’s guard against tyranny it was the new constitution. The constitution guards against tyranny by utilizing big states vs. small states, separation of powers, and checks and balances.

To start with, Big states vs.

small states least support the wall of tyranny in the United States. (In Document D) it states, “Representatives shall be apportioned according to population” This strategy is unfair because the bigger states tend to have bigger populations. For example, Rhode Island has a sq. area of 1,212 sq. miles with a population of 1.06 million. New York has a sq. area of 54,556 sq. miles. Rhode Island is one of the smaller states and it has 1 representative while New York one of the bigger states has 6 representatives. This means most of the representative power goes to the larger states, proving that the Big Vs Small states don’t guard against tyranny.

Furthermore, Separation of powers support the guard against tyranny but it is no foundation against tyranny. (In Document B) it states, “ Liberty requires that three great departments of power should be separate and distinct ” The strategy is strong, but the strategy has some flaws. One department can decide one day not to follow the rules of the constitution. For example, the legislative branch can decide to make laws that can only suit their needs in the

government.

Moreover, Checks and Balances is the most effective way of guarding against tyranny. (In Document C )“ the constant aim is to divide and arrange several offices” Aristotle once said, “ Every man should be responsible to others, nor should anyone be allowed to do just as he pleases; for where absolute freedom is allowed, there is nothing to restrain the evil which is inherent in every man. ” This means the everyone should be responsible for guiding others. This is were the checks and balances comes to play. The checks and balances is the most effective way of guarding against tyranny because the department makes sure that everyone is following the rules of their job, and the departments makes sure everyone is doing their assigned job. This is important because if the government doesn't do their job the government would fall apart.

All things considered, The separation of powers separates the powers between branches so no one get too much power its effective but, the checks and balances is the most effective way of guarding against tyranny because the department makes sure that everyone is following the rules of their job, and the departments makes sure everyone is doing their assigned job. The forms of guards against tyranny such as, Big states vs. Small states, separation of powers and check and balance frame the constitution. Although federalism is another method to protect against abuse of power it’s not as strong as the other three due to the fact that the Big states vs Small states try to equally separate the powers so each state can have some power in congress. The separation of powers separates the powers between branches so no one get too much power. Checks and balances makes sure that everyone is following the rules of their job, and the departments makes sure everyone is doing their assigned job. These all guard against tyranny better that Federalism. The issue is important because the people need to understand what the constitution did to make America a free country.