Republicanism

Effects of Human Greed Throughout history, there are many different styles and formations of governments: democracy, republic, monarchy, aristocracy, socialism, capitalism, dictatorship, etc. The most renowned type of government is Great Britain’s monarchy and the United States’ presidential system. Long before the United States’ presidential system was in place, Great Britain 's monarchy controlled us. Thomas Paine, a political theorist and philosopher, wrote a pamphlet Common Sense in 1776. In this pamphlet, Paine outlines this reflection of government and religion. Paine then applies this toward the new government of the United States. Paine’s argument is weak due his contradictions and unable to apply to practical use. Paine begins his piece by explaining the origin and of the birth of a government. “Society is produced by our wants, and government by our wickedness; the former promotes our happiness POSITIVELY by uniting our affections, the latter NEGATIVELY by restraining our vices” (1). The initial intention of any government of any society is supposed to provide security and protection to their citizens. Yet Paine did not consider if the government has the intention of protecting their citizens. For example, dictatorships suppress the opinions of others and transfers all the power to one person. This is only one example of human greed. Paine also doesn’t state exactly what desires and the government should suppress vices. This should be judged by the society that is…

The neo-republican ideology focuses on domination as freedom. Philip Pettit provides three core ideas to achieve freedom from domination with this neo-republican ideology. In this essay, I will identify republicanism and the historical context, analyse and evaluate these three core ideas, and also compare freedom in republicanism to the two concepts of liberty. Republicanism originated in Ancient Greece, based on the thoughts of Plato, Aristotle, and Polybius. The three of them were consistently…

The Enlightenment was a time in European history when many people started to think about the way they were being ruled. Enlightenment thinkers emphasized the idea of personal freedom and challenging the monarchy. Enlightenments thinkers and writes pushed for democracy and the recognition of “natural rights.” As more and more people adopted the mindset of the Enlightenment, they realized that the way they were being treated by the government was oppressive. This led to many tensions and…

In times before Rome, many cultures had a common constitution, however, before the Roman constitution, a Greek historian named Polybius claimed these were flawed and too ‘simple’. According to Polybius these constitutions operated under one of four types, kingship, aristocracy, democracy, and mob rule. These constitutions with the formation of civilization, begin and with kingship and work their way down respectively and are cyclical, as Polybius would point out “Constitutional…

When Thomas Jefferson and the founders were framing the newly formed nation they saw a very different direction of what the United States was to become. For the founders, republicanism was deeply rooted on the principle of "the people" sovereignty and not the abusive aristocratic monarchy used in colonial times. However, with social and economic changes republicanism slowly morphed into an idea that was to modernize with the changing American rhetoric. This sudden change in Republicanism would…

The American Revolution may never have happened if Britain had attempted to impose provocative declarations and legislation. These decisions by the British government intensified the colonists commitment to republicanism and resistance. The main concept grounding Republicanism is popular sovereignty, and opposition to monarchy and aristocracy. The idea of American Republicanism has essentially the same values. American Republicanism prioritizes liberty, unalienable rights for citizens and…

In the “Necessity of Political Vulgarity”, Amber A’Lee Frost argues that vulgarity, which refers to the “crass, ugly dispensation of judgment with little to no regard for propriety” (Frost), is a particularly revolutionary tool in political sphere for fighting the powerful because it reveals the political truths and undermines the opponents’ legitimacy. In contrast, civility, which means the usage of proper and dignified languages, is not as subversive as vulgarity in political sphere because it…

Republicanism- idea of being a republican in a nation where the head of the state is not appointed by blood but by election the idea of being headed by a limited government where rep serve the will of the people. (consent of the governed) this is significant because it was the type of government we had when we first the won the revolution or its what the colonists were pushing for. John Locke-English philosopher. He believed that all people had the right to life liberty and property. He came up…

Enlightenment ideals of Deism, Liberalism and Republicanism were written into our founding documents the founding fathers. The Declaration of Independence was written to make the colonists fight against the royal crown legitimate. The Declaration states “All men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” This is perhaps the most famous statement in all of the founding documents it is…

Ideas of classical republicanism swept through the colonies and many realized that reforms needed to occur. Classical republicanism was a new, radical set of ideas about government that surrounded the notion of liberty and virtue. This movement valued the people, believing that individuals were virtuous and were willing to surrender themselves for the common good. Republicanism valued independence; ownership of private property was crucial for the welfare of a country, for it were the landowners…