Unit 1: Chapter 1 (1.1–1.3) Flashcards
Who was Thomas Hobbes? What did he write?
Enlightenment philosopher who came up with the “state of nature” and social contract; wrote the Leviathan
What is the “social contract” according to Hobbes?
If everyone gives up some rights and agrees to live in peace, an absolute sovereign can uphold society, so long as that sovereign manages the people as the people wish, taking the good of society into account
What is the “state of nature” according to Hobbes?
The state of humans without society, which is violent and adheres to the “every man for himself” doctrine
What is limited government?
A government kept under control by law, separation of powers, and checks and balances
Who was John Locke? What did he write?
Enlightenment philosopher who came up with “natural law through human sense and reason” and said that the people have an obligation to rebellion; wrote the Second Treatise of Government
Who was Baron de Montesquieu? What did he write?
Enlightenment philosopher that spoke on the social contract and government having defined and limited power with political liberty, and came up with separation of powers, the three branches of government, “life, liberty, and property,” republicanism, and elected leaders; wrote The Spirit of the Laws
What are natural rights according to Locke?
The three, God-given rights of “life, liberty, and property”
What is popular sovereignty?
“The people” (or common populace) as the ultimate ruling authority
What is “natural law” according to Locke?
Law of God acknowledged by human sense and reason that in a state of nature people were born free and equal
What is a representative republic?
A collection of sovereign states gathered for the national interest, needs, and defense
What is republicanism?
Citizens elect leaders for a limited period of time
Who was Jean-Jacques Rousseau? What did he write?
Enlightenment philosopher influenced by Locke and wrote about the agreement of free and equal people to abandon certain rights for the protections of society and to find freedom in a single body politic committed to the general good in The Social Contract, and envisioned popular sovereignty and a government of officials to carry out the laws
Who was John Adams?
Second president who helped write the Declaration of Independence
What is the Declaration of Independence?
Document approved on July 4, 1776 that provided a moral and legal justification for the rebellion of the colonies
Who was Benjamin Franklin?
Enlightenment thinker and inventor who helped write certain foundational documents
Who was Alexander Hamilton?
Helped write the Constitution and later came up with the national bank
Who was Thomas Jefferson?
Inspired by Enlightenment ideas, he wrote the Declaration of Independence
Who was James Madison?
Earned nickname “Father of the Constitution” due to his heavy involvement in every stage of the Constitution, including the publicizing of it in writing some of the Federalist Papers
What is the U.S. Constitution?
The blueprint for the U.S. Government that outlines three branches of government, which can be edited and added to with amendments
Who was George Washington?
Revolutionary War General, later president of the Constitutional Convention, and even later the first president of the U.S., setting many precedents and traditions for being president
How does an elite democracy work?
Elected representatives make decisions and act as trustees for the people who elected them, recognizing an inequity in the spread of power among the general populace and elites
What are interest groups?
People with shared interests that organize and unite into nongovernmental groups to exert influence on political decision making that make up a pluralist democracy
How does a participatory democracy work?
Direct participation of many, if not most, people in a society, not only in government, but in public life as well
How does a pluralist democracy work?
Interest groups compete in the “marketplace of ideas” and look for access points at the local, state, and federal levels to persuade policymakers, allowing many people to voice their interests, preventing wealthy elite from grabbing all power
How does a representative democracy work?
People entrust elected officials to represent their concerns; umbrella term for participatory, pluralist, and elite democracies
Who were the Anti-Federalists?
The political party that opposed the Constitution and wanted more states rights as a result of not wanting a strong federal government
Who were the Federalists?
The political party that wanted a strong federal government, and thus supported the Constitution
What is a ballot initiative?
Power to place a measure on the ballot for a popular vote
What is referendum?
Citizens can contest the work of the legislature by gathering support, usually through signatures on a petition, to call for a vote to defeat or uphold unpopular legislation
What are factions?
Another word for interest groups (see slide on interest groups)
What is Federalist No. 10? Who wrote it?
Paper that addresses the concern that a few powerful individuals might unite into a faction to dominate politics by saying that with the size of the U.S. and its many people, thus many factions, it would be impossible for such a thing to happen, as the overlapping factions would cancel each other out; written by James Madison
What is Brutus No. 1?
Paper that comments on the dangers of too large and too consolidated a government, and that citizens wouldn’t pay enough attention to government for the Constitution to work, arguing that this version of government would have too much power
Which is the most democratic institution of government that represents the framers’ commitment to a limited republic?
U.S. House of Representatives
Which philosopher wrote the ‘Second Treatise of Civil Government’?
John Locke
Which philosopher wrote ‘Leviathan’?
Thomas Hobbes
Fill in the blank: John Locke believed in the _______. (Hint: it’s to do with the relationship between government and the governed)
social contract
Which of the following is a chief argument in James Madison’s Federalist No. 10?
A large, diverse republic will tame the mischiefs of factions.
In the Mayflower Compact, the authors recognized what?
Their right to a collective self-rule even as British subjects
Which Enlightenment philosophy is most consistent with the ideas in the Mayflower Compact?
Locke’s consent of the governed
What is a key distinction between Federalists and Anti-Federalists?
Federalists wanted a strong national government; Anti-Federalists wanted the states to have greater power
True or False: The authors of the Mayflower Compact believed that everyone in the colony should share the same religion.
False
Fill in the blank: Hobbes argued that in a state of nature, people are _______.
Free and equal
What was the Enlightenment?
An intellectual movement that was influenced by deism and the admiration of human achievement
What did the Mayflower Compact aim to establish?
A civil body politic for better ordering and preservation
What did Anti-Federalists fear regarding large states?
That large states would have more power than the federal government
What is the significance of the ‘necessary and proper’ clause?
It gives flexibility to legislation and grants implied powers to the branches of government
Fill in the blank: Montesquieu believed in _______. (Hint: it has to do with law, checks and balances, and separation of powers)
limited government
Who was Brutus? How many essays did they write?
The a pseudonym for Anti-Federalists that wrote arguments against the Federalist Papers and the Constitution; wrote a total of 16 essays
Why did the colonists want independence from Britain?
The buildup of British suppression of self-rule, economic punishments, and unfair trials and imprisonments made the colonists angry
Who wrote Common Sense? Why was it important?
Thomas Paine; it was a widespread condemnation of British rule and an incitement toward revolution
What is the Bill of Rights? How many rights were listed?
A list of “basic rights” at the end of the Constitution as amendments that the anti-federalist states required to pass the Constitution into law; 10 are written
What is habeas corpus?
The inability of government to hold anyone captive for no good or proven reason
Explain how the difference in population density might affect citizen representation in a new government.
Higher population density could lead to more representation due to larger urban populations; conversely, rural areas with lower density may have underrepresented voices.
Which form of democracy might be most effective in governing a population with varied densities?
Pluralist democracy allows for multiple interests to be represented, accommodating diverse populations.
