Without a large republic not only are you going to have the tyranny of the majority, but you are not going to have a unified country. If we become factionalized to the point where every person represents their own views we are going to be headed towards civil war quickly, and we are going to break up as a nation. By having a large republic and by having all of these voices silenced in their factions we can stay coherent. Madison comes to the conclusion we are not going to have a large enough faction to tear the nation apart, but he is wrong because different opinions will always exist as long as people are free and self-love exist. These factions are inevitably going to tear the nation apart. Lets examine some of the historical events that …show more content…
Madison believed that factions would not be widespread and would only exist within a state, but he was mistaken. Numerous people of the North and South united in the Abolition Movement. He also believed that a strong union could keep factions under control, but once again he was wrong because the Abolition movement demonstrated how weak the nation was. Madison said the main source of factions was distribution of property; however, slaves were considered property back then and that is one of the reasons the Abolition movement formed, to grant the slaves freedom. Similarly, The New Deal Democratic coalition, which included groups such as workers, small farmers, Catholics, and racial minorities, was a coalition that supported The New Deal. In the 1960's; however, the coalition spilt up due to the Civil Rights movement. The Civil Rights movement is important because it caused Southerners to switch from Democratic to …show more content…
Well, it is impossible to contain factions and it would be absurd to even try. As James Madison said, “liberty is to faction what air is to fire.” Meaning without the nourishment of liberty, faction instantly dies. But eradicating liberty, an essential of political life is as foolish as the wish to annihilate air, an essential of life. So even though Madison had some valid points in his arguments a lot of his ideas were flawed. Federalist Fifty-One, also written by James Madison, focuses on seperation of powers within the government and checks and balances. The essay begins with a great quote: “If men were angles, no government would be necessary. If angles were to govern
James Madison’s Federalist 10 was written amid criticisms that a republican form of government had never been successful on a large scale. Madison’s argument was that a well-constructed union could control factions. He argued that in order to control factions from their causes, we would need to either give up liberty or free thought. Since we cannot infringe upon these two natural rights, we must move on to controlling the effects. A republic, Madison argues, would be able to do this because the people choose the representatives, and they choose representatives who they feel best represent their opinions.
Tola APGOPO 10/9/12 Exemplar Large Republic: Best Control of Effects of Factions Federalist 10 Summary: In Federalist 10, James Madison or Publius asserts that the Constitution establishes a government capable of controlling the violence and damage caused by factions. He states that Antifederalist complain that the government is too unstable, claim rival parties disregard the public good, and that decisions are made by the majority rather than by justice and the rights of the minority. Madison goes on to define a faction as a group of citizens, either a majority or minority, whose actions are motivated by a passion or interest that hurts the rights of other citizens or goes against the best interests of the
Perhaps the most famous Federalist paper, Federalist 10, starts off by saying that one of the biggest arguments that favors the Constitution is that it creates a government suited to minimize the harm caused by factions. Faction, in this case, is defined as a group of people whether a minority or majority based on class, race, and profession that all share a common interest. It was inevitable that factions would occur and perhaps the defining characteristic was the unequal distribution of property. This would ultimately lead the poor without property to become the majority in a “tyranny of the masses.” Madison believed that there were two solutions in preventing majority factions, 1) Remover the causes, and 2) Control the effects.
1. In Federalist Paper 10, Madison expressed concerns about factions and his desire to protect the minority (people with land) from the majority (those without). He stated that a large republic should be created so that tiny factions interest groups will have a difficult time uniting and becoming a majority that usurps the minority. Do you think this theory has withstood the test of time? Discuss instances in which it has/has not.
Madison begins Federalist 10 by stating that a well-functioning government should be able to prevent and control factions and their effects. A faction is any group of people who hold a shared interest and whose common interest either hinders the rights of others in society or harms society as a whole. Although factions cause confusion and violence to occur in a society, no government will be able to stop factions from developing; Madison states that this is because, in order to destroy factions, one would need to destroy liberty. Along with not being able to abolish factions, Madison asserts that it is impractical to try to control factions because individuals will always have differing opinions; he also articulates that the main purpose of governments is to protect
The Federalist Papers are some of the most important words that have been written in this history of the United States and were written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison who is responsible for Number 10. Madison focuses Number 10 on factions, their causes, and the result of their existence. Madison beings by stating the capability of the Constitution to control the outcome of factions, such as violence or damage and goes on to state the causes of factions and the solutions to their existence. Madison’s main focus in his paper is factions and their outcomes; a faction is simply a group of people with a common interest, either the “majority or minority of the whole.” Factions originate when people divide themselves over
“The accumulation of all powers..in the same hands, whether of one or many (is) the very definition of tyranny.” (James Madison, Federalist Paper #47, 1788) ( Background Essay) This quote explains the reasoning for one of the framers, (B) Separation of Powers. The framers of the constitution were created to prevent tyranny and create a stronger government that would hold the nation together. Tyranny ultimately means harsh, absolute power in the hands of one individual-- like a king or dictator. The constitution guarded against tyranny in 4 ways: (A)Federalism, (B)Separation of Powers, (C)Checks & Balances, and (D)Small State-Large State.
James Madison’s writing of Federalist No. 10 examines the issues regarding the original Articles of Confederation, weighing and balancing the options of creating an effective government from a Federalist perspective. Madison’s attempt is to give the majority the power such as in a true democracy, though this raises the issue such that the majority may be in the wrong. In this, people of the minorities such as Madison himself being a wealthy citizen would need to “watch out” for the majority that they just gave the power to. Madison discussed how a republic system may be a solution to such a problem. He feels as if a republic would solve many of these solutions, yet cause more at the same time.
10 in an attempt to ratify the Constitution, the new form of government for the United States. In the Federalist Paper No. 10, Madison analyzed the way to deal with facts, made a comparison between a pure democracy and a republic, and made another comparison on whether a small government or a large government would be the best for America. He informed the people that there is not a way to completely get rid of factions, but there are ways to deal with them. One great way to deal with factions is by having a government that knows how to control and deal with their effects. Madison believes that a republic can do that job better than a democracy, because a democracy is a small society of people who can not admit there is a cure to factions.
Madison, in federalist paper no. 10, said that “The latent causes of faction are thus sown in the nature of man,” and concluded that the best way to live with this fact is by restraining these factions. One of the best ways that this is accomplished is through the number of different groups themselves. In a small democracy, the whims of the majority could cause radical and harmful government choices. The organization of a large republic makes it difficult for any group to gain significant influence over the government. Not only this, but the checks and balances of the branches of government and the distance of lawmaking from the majority also slow a majority in government from making rash decisions.
In the case of taxation, the more powerful of the two parties would have the opportunity to impose higher taxes on the minority, thus, saving themselves money. Madison firmly believed that the constitution had the ability to solve the problems created by factions. Madison envisioned a large republic that would make it difficult for corrupt candidates to get elected. Madison expressed this by stating, In the next place, as each representative will be chosen by a greater number of citizens in the large than in the small republic, it will be more difficult for unworthy candidates to practice with success the vicious arts by which elections are too often carried; and the suffrages of the people being more free, will be more likely to centre in men who possess the most attractive merit and the most diffusive and established characters.
James Madison defined faction by “[n]umber of citizens, whether a majority or minority, who were united and activated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adverse to the rights of other citizens, or to the permanent and aggregate interests of the community.” (#10 Madison)
1.) What does Madison mean by the term “Faction”? What is a modern term we would use today? Madison uses the term faction to refer to groups of individuals arguing not for the rights or good of the community as a whole, but rather that which would benefit those who hold similar positions or interests. Different factions represent different ideas, leading to conflict and debate.
In the Federalist Paper number 51, Madison writes to the people of New York to explain that it is necessary for a separation of powers between the departments of the government. Madison, with the help of Hamilton, wrote the Federalist Papers to explain sections of the Constitution. In Federalist Paper number 51, Madison explains that the government does not have a strong structure on the outside, but creating a firm structure within the government could be a solution. The firmer structure would be the separation of powers. In order for the people to get a better idea and make a more accurate judgement about the separation of powers, Madison shares observations and puts them into simpler terms.
Madison brings up that it isn’t possible to divide power absolutely equally and “In republican government, the legislative authority necessarily predominates.” (2). And so, the legislative branch will be divided even more to try and combat the unbalance of power. Madison thought this system was a good method because he believed that it was part of human nature to have conflicting ideas and wants, and so each branch could keep the others in line and therefor no one power is above the others. Furthermore, Madison believes a bigger government with multiple branches is better because then it becomes difficult for one