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the evolution of democracy
How democracy evolved in united states
the evolution of democracy in us
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After a hard won bitter revolution, America was given the opportunity to create its own government. The Founding Fathers did not want to create another monarchy, but instead a republic, or representative government, was formed. The Constitution was organized to establish laws for government and people. The Founding Father’s political theory was antithesis to American democratic faith. The philosophy of the founding fathers is analyzed including the idea of stability in government, republicanism, and the nature of man.
The Constitution was issued by prominent figures of society such as lawyers, businessmen, merchants, or investors. Their intellectual ideas were based on Calvinistic views and from Hobbes’s theory. They believed in the sense of human evil and that men are selfish. The makers of the constitution imagined a humane and democratic society that could be controlled by government. The Founding Fathers were concerned to create a government to regulate trade and institute class structure. The actions of citizens from the Shay’s rebellion generated a fear of uprising from lower classes. The Fathers wanted a “balance government” that would not create conflicts among classes. During the convention in Philadelphia, George Washington addressed his view on stability of the people. He urged the delegates not to make a document that only “pleased the people.” Fair treatment within classes was necessary but in contradiction to the Founding fathers belief, “man is an unregenerate rebel who has to be controlled.” (page 7)
The founding fathers believed in representative government, based on sovereignty and emphasis on civic virtue. They opposed arbitrary rule indicated by the revolution against Britain. The reason for independence ...
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...ible voice in society.” (Page 18) Freedom for property was only given to worthy men. This contradicts the statement that all men are created equal. The fathers began to regulate trade acting like mercantilists, rather then giving an option of “freedom of trade.” “Liberty did not mean free access to the nation’s unappropriated wealth.” (Page 15) The constitutionalists wanted to gain negative liberties.
To create stability and prevent internal conflict the founding fathers instituted a republic. This allowed wiser and suitable candidates to control government. The Fathers had a different interpretation of liberty, in which liberty was linked to the possession of property. The misconception of man to change was a predicament in the philosophy of the Fathers. The Founding Fathers laid a higher order of law and established a government that will last for centuries.
During and after the turmoil of the American Revolution, the people of America, both the rich and the poor, the powerful and the meek, strove to create a new system of government that would guide them during their unsure beginning. This first structure was called the Articles of Confederation, but it was ineffective, restricted, and weak. It was decided to create a new structure to guide the country. However, before a new constitution could be agreed upon, many aspects of life in America would have to be considered. The foremost apprehensions many Americans had concerning this new federal system included fear of the government limiting or endangering their inalienable rights, concern that the government’s power would be unbalanced, both within
He frequently quoted notable historical figures, including the Founders, Roman philosopher Cicero, Alexis de Tocqueville, and several others. Skousen wrote in the introductory essay, “[Our] Founding Fathers believed that the Constitution was destined to bless all mankind - and that it was ‘incumbent on their successors’ to preserve and defend our national charter of liberty (i).” It was apparent that the Founders firmly believed in the power of the Constitution’s principles to mold American society, and this idea formed the basis of the book. John Adams insisted, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government by any other (56).” This assisted in describing the necessity of virtue and morality within a society of free people. Additionally, the Founders undertook great measures to ensure a system of checks and balances was implemented by the American government. James Madison explained, “The accumulation of all powers, legislative, executive, and judiciary, in the same hands, whether of one, a few, or many, and whether hereditary, self-appointed, or elective, may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny
We can see the people needed a strong central government which was given to them with the Constitution of the United States. The Articles of Confederation which was a good starter for the Constitution, but was deemed to be too weak to allow the American people to feel secure with their independence. The Constitution seemed to be a far more superior and detailed government allowing the people to gain there freedom and give America what we have today.
A constitution is the system of fundamental principles according to which a nation is governed. Our founding fathers created the US Constitution to set specific standards for our country. We must ask ourselves why our founding fathers created the Constitution in the first place. America revolted against the British due to their monarchy form of government. After the American Revolution, each of the original 13 colonies operated under its own rules of government. Most states were against any form of centralized rule from the government. They feared that what happened in England would happen again. They decided to write the Articles of Confederation, which was ratified in 1781. It was not effective and it led to many problems. The central government could not regulate commerce between states, deal with foreign governments or settle disputes. The country was falling apart at its seams. The central government could not provide assistance to the state because there wasn’t a central army. When they realized that the Articles of Confederation was not up to par, they held a convention, known as the Constitutional Convention of 1787. As a result of t...
...uestioned, overall, the Constitution of the United States was their foundation of what they stood for, and was used to enforce the rights of men against the tyrannical aristocracy that resembled the unjust monarchy of Britain from which they fled. The concepts and ideals of these two men were a giant stepping stone to the democratic government that rules America today.
...e Founding Fathers because their former relations with the monarch of Britain, which essentially influenced the principle of separation of power. Presently, disregarding the right of a human life by subjecting them to a lifetime of forced servitude is undoubtedly unethical and illegal; however, the mere exception in the past regarding the issue of slavery influenced the separation of power to support slaves. The limited powers of the federal government allowed for states to have exerting authority over their respective constituencies. Consequently, because of the separation of powers between governments in the United States, it evidently provided justification for southern states to advocate for the slavery. As a mechanism devised to protect slavery in the South, the separation of power in the United States proved to be detrimental to the nation and its residents.
The character of the United States is illuminated by the Declaration of Independence. Thomas Jefferson wanted to build a government where people are free and where the government “derives its power from the consent of the governed and it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it” (Jefferson, 247). T...
Following the states’ need to approve of the Constitution, both the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists began producing papers that argued for their point of view in detail. Anti-federalists, who were the small farmers, laborers, and other middle class men, inclined to believe in a strong state government and a weak national government; additionally, they demanded a Bill of Rights to strengthen individual liberties. For instance, Jefferson Writings wrote to James Madison in 1787, “… a bill of rights is what the people are entitled to against every government on earth, general or particular, and what no just government should refuse,” which meant to explain that a Bill of Rights would protect people’s freedoms and prevent corruption from the government that the Federalists envisioned, (Docume...
Most of the founding fathers believed that each virtue was not about competition or disagreements but what they thought would be best for our country. As Samuel Adams states, “Neither the wisest constitution nor the wisest laws will secure the liberty and happiness of a people whose manners are universally corrupt.” (Samuel Adams) He believed that even the best laws and constitution will not keep liberty safe, rather than the people who fight for liberty and promote its virtue will be the ones in power. On July 4th, 1776, Thomas Jefferson wrote the
The men who wrote the American constitution agreed with Thomas Hobbes that humans were naturally evil. Therefore, they agreed that in order to prevent a dictatorship or monarchy, the citizens should have influence in the government. The writers wanted a more ideal constitution, but they realized evil human motives would never change. One of the main goals of the constitution was to create a balanced government that would allow the citizens to prevent each other from being corrupt. The writers wanted to give citizens liberty, but they did not want to give people so much liberty that they would have an uncontrollable amount of power. The writers agreed that a citizen’s influence in government would be proportionate to that individual’s property.
The reasoning behind the Constitution of the United States is presented as 'based upon the philosophy of Hobbes and the religion of Calvin. It assumes the natural state of mankind in a state of war, and that the carnal mind is at enmity with God.' Throughout, the struggle between democracy and tyranny is discussed as the Founding Fathers who envisioned the Constitution in Philadelphia in 1787 believed not in total democracy, but instead saw common man as selfish and contemptuous, and therefore in need of a 'a good political constitution to control him.' Being a largely propertied body, with the exception of William Few, who was the only one who could honestly be said to represent the majority yeoman farmer class, the highly privileged classes were fearful of granting man his due rights, as the belief that 'man was an unregenerate rebel who has to be controlled' reverberated.
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 creating the Constitution, the states had several different reactions, including a rather defensive reaction, but also an understanding reaction. As a document that provided the laws of the land and the rights of its people. It directs its attention to the many problems in this country; it offered quite a challenge because the document lent itself to several views and interpretations, depending upon the individual reading it. It is clear that the founders’ perspectives as white, wealthy or elite class, American citizens would play a role in the creation and implementation of The Constitution.
The American fight for freedom is a critical part of the American history. Following the foundation of a nation, the individuals who enabled the fight for freedom and were central in the fight called the founding fathers. In the book ‘Revolutionary Characters: What Made the Founders Different’, the author provides a vivid investigation of the founding fathers. The book offers a unique point of view that looks on to the founding fathers’ live in detail. The book offers knowledge that extends beyond what is availed into the history books into an analysis of character to present their individual values as a system in which they founded guiding principles for the country. The paper offer an analysis of ‘Revolutionary Characters: What Made the Founders Different’. Gordon Wood brings to light the ethical principles of the founding fathers to bring to light the basis of moral statures propagated and applied in the democratic system today despite the difference in time.
The Constitution, when first introduced, set the stage for much controversy in the United States. The two major parties in this battle were the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists. The Federalists, such as James Madison, were in favor of ratifying the Constitution. On the other hand, the Anti-Federalists, such as Patrick Henry and Richard Henry Lee, were against ratification. Each party has their own beliefs on why or why not this document should or should not be passed. These beliefs are displayed in the following articles: Patrick Henry's "Virginia Should Reject the Constitution," Richard Henry Lee's "The Constitution Will Encourage Aristocracy," James Madison's "Federalist Paper No. 10," and "The Letters to Brutus." In these documents, many aspects of the Constitution, good and bad, are discussed. Although the Federalists and Anti-Federalists had very conflicting views, many common principals are discussed throughout their essays. The preservation of liberty and the effects of human nature are two aspects of these similarities. Although the similarities exist, they represent and support either the views of the Federalists or the Anti-Federalists.