why is federalist no 10 important

The Federalist Papers are significant to political history because of the immediate effect they had on their audience. New York voted to ratify the Constitution, proving the Federalist Papers a success. Specifically, No. 10 is significant due to its groundbreaking views of factions and welcoming of infinite opinions.

Full Answer

What did Federalist 10 say about factions?

Federalist Paper 10 is all about warning the power of factions and competing interests over the United States Government. Since everyone has their own self-interests, and people’s self-interests clash with others’, governments have to be able to pass laws for the common good instead of any one specific group.

What is the purpose of Federalist 10?

The purpose of Federalist No. 10 was to demonstrate that the proposed government was not likely to be dominated by any faction. Contrary to conventional wisdom, Madison argued, the key to mending the evils of factions is to have a large republic—the larger, the better. Why is the federalist still important today?

What does Federalist 10 argue?

In Federalist #10, James Madison argues that the greatest vice of popular government is its vulnerability to problems caused by factions, special interest groups who, in supporting their own interests, occasionally undermine the rights of other citizens or the good of the whole. People are diverse by nature, possessing different opinions, abilities, and resources.

What is a summary of Federalist 10?

Summary Madison wrote Federalist 10 to defend the Constitution against the charge that a faction would soon gain control, substituting its own interest for the national interest. The antidote to the problem of faction, Madison declared, is a large republic with a multiplicity of interests, making it unlikely that a majority faction will form.

Who wrote the Federalist No. 10?

James Madison wrote Federalist No. 10. He was part of a trio of authors who wrote under the pseudonym "Publius." He had also played an important ro...

What is the main idea of Federalist Paper 10?

The main point of Federalist Paper 10 is that a strong federal government can protect liberty because it guards against the dangers of control by a...

What is the source of factions Federalist 10?

Federalist No. 10 was originally published in the New York newspaper the Independent Journal in 1787. It was later collected and published as par...

Why was the Federalist Paper No. 10 written?

Federalist No. 10 was written to support the ratification of the new United States Constitution. It argued that the centralized government would pr...

What is Federalist No. 10?

The Federalist Papers were a series of essays by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay, writing under the pseudonym "Publius," supporting the ratification of the newly written American Constitution. The essays were the most significant contribution to the debate over the structure of the new American government. Thomas Jefferson called them "the best commentary on the principles of government which ever was written."

When was Federalist No. 10 published?

Federalist No. 10 was originally published in the New York newspaper the Independent Journal in 1787. It was later collected and published as part of the Federalist Papers.

How did Madison's argument affect the electorate?

First of all, Madison argues that large republics have the effect of filtering out undesirable people or opinions before they become too powerful. The choice of leaders would be made by people who were prominent enough not to be swayed by their own self-interest; in Madison's words, "citizens whose wisdom may best discern the true interest of their country." The larger the electorate, the more likely it was to elect someone prominent rather than someone attentive to narrow interests. The Constitution purposely made Congress smaller, in proportion to its constituency's size, than the state legislatures were. The electoral college and the fact that Senators were often selected by state legislatures rather than by popular vote were ways to achieve this filtering process (although Madison does not explicitly refer to these features in Federalist No. 10). This filtering process was an elitist and anti-democratic measure, compared to the greater popular involvement that was possible at the state level.

Why did Madison argue that the causes of faction cannot be eliminated?

Madison then argues that the causes of faction cannot be eliminated because they stem from human nature. For example, people are naturally inclined to disagree passionately about religion and politics, which splits them into opposing camps. For Madison, the most common source of faction is the "unequal distribution of property," not only between debtors and creditors (the issue in Shays' Rebellion) but also among agricultural, manufacturing, and commercial interests. This was a problem for the newly independent America because different states had different economies--for example, the South was predominantly agricultural, while the North was more commercial. A more centralized government would have to manage these differences.

Why was the Constitution important?

The Constitution was an attempt to curb the spirit of liberty and correct the government's weakness by providing a centralized federal government that was protected from too much popular democracy. Thus, the debate over the Constitution (between Federalists like Madison and Hamilton, and Anti-federalists who opposed the Constitution) centered on whether the government it created would have too much centralized power.

Why did Madison say the only solution was to limit their harmful effects?

Because the sources of faction were impossible to eliminate, Madison claims the only solution is to limit their harmful effects. He argues that the proposed federal system is the best way to do this.

What is the advantage of representative democracy?

According to Madison, the advantage of representative democracy is that it can govern a larger country than direct democracy- -it can "extend the sphere" of government, in Madison's terminology. This was in contrast to earlier political philosophers like Montesquieu and Rousseau, who assumed that republics worked best in small nations. Madison further argues that the larger size of a republic is, in turn, what protects against the danger of faction, for two reasons.

Why is Federalist Number 10 Important?

Federalist No. 10 is possibly the most famous of The Federalist Papers, and is even regarded as one of the highest-quality political writings of all time. Some people even called James Madison the “Father of the Constitution” because of his essays’ influence.

What is Federalist 10?

Federalist No. 10 is possibly the most famous of The Federalist Papers, and is even regarded as one of the highest-quality political writings of all time. Some people even called James Madison the “Father of the Constitution” because of his essays’ influence.

What was Madison's most effective way to control factions?

According to Federalist No. 10, Madison thought the most effective way to control factions was. (A) eliminating the source of their grievances. (B) forming a representative republic that would prevent oppression of their opponents. (C) adhering to the strong state powers outlined in the Articles of Confederation.

What did Madison say about liberty?

Taking away liberty was out of the question for Madison – he wrote, “Liberty is to faction what air is to fire.” Fire needs air to exist, but so do humans. Madison means that taking away liberty would destroy the factions, but it would also destroy others’ happiness. The second option – giving everyone the same opinions – is also impossible. As long as humans have the ability to reason, Madison says, they will form different opinions. Therefore, Madison argued instead that factions must be controlled by responding to them. He wanted to do this by giving them representation in a republican government.

How are factions controlled?

Factions are controlled either by removing the causes or controlling the effects. Essentially, this means that the government can either solve the problem with which the faction is concerned, or wait for the faction to act and repair the damage. Madison believed that removing the causes was impractical.

Why did anti-federalists oppose the constitution?

Instead, they wanted state governments to have more authority. This policy was outlined in the Articles of Confederation, the predecessor to the Constitution.

Who wrote the Federalist Papers?

You should be familiar with no only Federalist No. 10, but The Federalist Papers as a whole and the other authors, John Jay and Alexander Hamilton. The multiple-choice section of the APUSH exam now asks you to respond to “stimulus material.”.

What is Federalist No. 10?

Published on November 22, 1787 under the name "Publius", Federalist No. 10 is among the most highly regarded of all American political writings. [1] No. 10 addresses the question of how to reconcile citizens with interests contrary to the rights of others or inimical to the interests of the community as a whole .

What was the anti-federalist position on the size of the states?

Generally, it was their position that republics about the size of the individual states could survive, but that a republic on the size of the Union would fail. A particular point in support of this was that most of the states were focused on one industry—to generalize, commerce and shipping in the northern states and plantation farming in the southern. The Anti-Federalist belief that the wide disparity in the economic interests of the various states would lead to controversy was perhaps realized in the American Civil War, which some scholars attribute to this disparity. Madison himself, in a letter to Thomas Jefferson, noted that differing economic interests had created dispute, even when the Constitution was being written. At the convention, he particularly identified the distinction between the northern and southern states as a "line of discrimination" that formed "the real difference of interests".

What is Madison's argument about restraining liberty to limit faction?

Madison's argument that restraining liberty to limit faction is an unacceptable solution has been used by opponents of campaign finance limits. Justice Clarence Thomas, for example, invoked Federalist No. 10 in a dissent against a ruling supporting limits on campaign contributions, writing: "The Framers preferred a political system that harnessed such faction for good, preserving liberty while also ensuring good government. Rather than adopting the repressive 'cure' for faction that the majority today endorses, the Framers armed individual citizens with a remedy."

What is number 10?

For example, in Democracy in America, Alexis de Tocqueville refers specifically to more than fifty of the essays, but No. 10 is not among them. [33] Today, however, No. 10 is regarded as a seminal work of American democracy. In "The People's Vote", a popular survey conducted by the National Archives and Records Administration, National History Day, and U.S. News and World Report, No. 10 (along with Federalist No. 51, also by Madison) was chosen as the 20th most influential document in United States history. [34] David Epstein, writing in 1984, described it as among the most highly regarded of all American political writing. [35]

How to limit the effects of faction?

Madison first theorizes that there are two ways to limit the damage caused by faction: either remove the causes of faction or control its effects. He then describes the two methods to remove the causes of faction: first, destroying liberty, which would work because "liberty is to faction what air is to fire", [17] but it is impossible to perform because liberty is essential to political life, just as air is "essential to animal life." After all, Americans fought for it during the American Revolution. The second option, creating a society homogeneous in opinions and interests, is impracticable. The diversity of the people's ability is what makes them succeed more or less, and inequality of property is a right that the government should protect. Madison particularly emphasizes that economic stratification prevents everyone from sharing the same opinion. Madison concludes that the damage caused by faction can be limited only by controlling its effects.

What did Madison see in the Constitution?

Madison saw the federal Constitution as providing for a "happy combination" of a republic and a purer democracy, with "the great and aggregate interests being referred to the national, the local and particular to the State legislatures" resulting in a decentralized governmental structure.

Why does Madison argue that the only problem comes from majority factions?

He then argues that the only problem comes from majority factions because the principle of popular sovereignty should prevent minority factions from gaining power. Madison offers two ways to check majority factions: prevent the "existence of the same passion or interest in a majority at the same time" or render a majority faction unable to act. Madison concludes that a small democracy cannot avoid the dangers of majority faction because small size means that undesirable passions can very easily spread to a majority of the people, which can then enact its will through the democratic government without difficulty.

Who called the Federalist Papers the best commentary on the principles of government?

Thomas Jefferson called The Federalist Papers “the best commentary on the principles of government, which was ever written.”. It was true then, and remains true today. The masterpiece of American political thought began as a series of newspaper opinion pieces encouraging Americans to ratify the Constitution.

What is the best federalist paper?

No. 10 Is The Best Federalist Paper, And That’s Why The Left Hates It So Much. Progressives have a different purpose for government than securing citizens’ natural rights. They want to use the vast powers of government to change America. By Robert Curry. By Robert Curry. April 9, 2019.

What has taught the Progressives about their Marxist roots?

The stupendous evil and stupidity of every Marxist state from the USSR to Venez uela has taught the Progressives to be coy about their Marxist roots today. Consequently, they have shifted the ground of their attacks on No. 10, but the assault continues unabated. Garry Wills, for example, attacks No. 10 head-on in his book Explaining America: “What he [Madison] protects is not the common good but delay as such.” The shift from “economic determinism” to “delay” reflects the Progressives’ abandonment of Marxist utopianism for straightforward opposition to the Constitution’s design and purpose.

Why did the Progressives shift from economic determinism to delay?

The shift from “economic determinism” to “delay” reflects the Progressives’ abandonment of Mar xist utopianism for straightforward opposition to the Constitution’s design and purpose. For the founders, the purpose of the Constitution was preserving liberty in a regime of limited, republican government.

What is Madison's most famous argument?

10. An extended republic of the kind the Founders envisioned , Madison argues, has a built-in feature that safeguards the rights of its citizens arising ...

Who wrote Federalist No. 10?

Federalist No. 10 was written by James Madison in November 1787 and was a continuation of Federalist No. 9, written by Alexander Hamilton. The theme of both numbers was “The Utility of the Union as a Safeguard against Domestic Factions and Insurrection.” What follows is an analysis of Federalist No. 10 wherein some parts will be summarized for brevity and other parts quoted directly. Reading this analysis will aid one in understanding the assertions of Federalist No. 10.

What were the concerns of the Anti-Federalists?

For instance, the geographical size of the several States and the difficulty constructing a central government over said States while simultaneously preserving freedom present s a troubling conundrum. The “dissent” from the “Pennsylvania Minority” states their position thusly:

What is the answer to obviating the havoc from a factious spirit?

The answer to obviating the havoc from a factious spirit can be found in the new constitution, i.e., from the Constitutional Convention, 1787. It was not proposed that the new constitution would eliminate factionalism; rather, it was thought that relief could be found through it in the “means of controlling its effects.” Consequently, Madison makes his argument as follows.

What does Madison believe about the machinery of a republic?

According to Federalist 10, Madison believes that the machinery of a republic will produce “a chosen body of citizens, whose wisdom may best discern the true interest of their country” and whose patriotism and love of justice will be “least likely to sacrifice it to temporary or partial considerations.” Madison asserts that “it may well happen” that this select body will speak with greater consonance for the public good than the people could accomplish were they to assemble together. However, Madison also delivers a warning: The good effects of a wise body of citizens may be inverted if men of “factious tempers, of local prejudices, or of sinister designs, may, by intrigue, by corruption, or by other means, first obtain the suffrages, and then betray the interests, of the people.”

What is the advantage promised by a well-constructed union?

In the opening paragraph, Madison conceptually scaffolds the subject matter by asserting that an advantage promised by a “well-constructed Union” is its “tendency to break and control the violence of faction,” which he describes as a “dangerous vice” to which “popular” governments are prone. Madison writes that factionalism introduces into popular governments “instability, injustice, and confusion” and is a mortal disease under which such governments have “everywhere perished.” Thus, friends of popular government will highly value “any plan” that will cure the violence of faction, without violating its fundamental principles.

What does "faction" mean in Madison?

Madison defines faction in these terms: “By a faction, I understand a number of citizens, whether amounting to a majority or a minority of the whole, who are united and actuated 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."

Why do representatives have to be raised to a certain number?

In the first place, it is to be remarked that, however small the republic may be, the representatives must be raised to a certain number, in order to guard against the cabals of a few; and that, however large it may be, they must be limited to a certain number, in order to guard against the confusion of a multitude. Hence, the number of representatives in the two cases not being in proportion to that of the two constituents, and being proportionally greater in the small republic, it follows that, if the proportion of fit characters be not less in the large than in the small republic, the former will present a greater option, and consequently a greater probability of a fit choice.

What happens when a faction is less than a majority?

If a faction consists of less than a majority, relief is supplied by the republican principle, which enables the majority to defeat its sinister views by regular vote. It may clog the administration, it may convulse the society; but it will be unable to execute and mask its violence under the forms of the Constitution. When a majority is included in a faction, the form of popular government, on the other hand, enables it to sacrifice to its ruling passion or interest both the public good and the rights of other citizens. To secure the public good and private rights against the danger of such a faction, and at the same time to preserve the spirit and the form of popular government, is then the great object to which our inquiries are directed. Let me add that it is the great desideratum by which this form of government can be rescued from the opprobrium under which it has so long labored, and be recommended to the esteem and adoption of mankind.

Why do representatives have to be raised to a certain number?

In the first place, it is to be remarked that, however small the republic may be, the representatives must be raised to a certain number, in order to guard against the cabals of a few; and that, however large it may be, they must be limited to a certain number, in order to guard against the confusion of a multitude.

What are the causes of factions?

The latent causes of faction are thus sown in the nature of man; and we see them everywhere brought into different degrees of activity, according to the different circumstances of civil society. A zeal for different opinions concerning religion, concerning government, and many other points, as well of speculation as of practice; an attachment to different leaders ambitiously contending for pre-eminence and power; or to persons of other descriptions whose fortunes have been interesting to the human passions, have, in turn, divided mankind into parties, inflamed them with mutual animosity, and rendered them much more disposed to vex and oppress each other than to co-operate for their common good. So strong is this propensity of mankind to fall into mutual animosities, that where no substantial occasion presents itself, the most frivolous and fanciful distinctions have been sufficient to kindle their unfriendly passions and excite their most violent conflicts. But the most common and durable source of factions has been the various and unequal distribution of property. Those who hold and those who are without property have ever formed distinct interests in society. Those who are creditors, and those who are debtors, fall under a like discrimination. A landed interest, a manufacturing interest, a mercantile interest, a moneyed interest, with many lesser interests, grow up of necessity in civilized nations, and divide them into different classes, actuated by different sentiments and views. The regulation of these various and interfering interests forms the principal task of modern legislation, and involves the spirit of party and faction in the necessary and ordinary operations of the government.

What are the advantages of a wellconstructed Union?

AMONG the numerous advantages promised by a wellconstructed Union, none deserves to be more accurately developed than its tendency to break and control the violence of faction. The friend of popular governments never finds himself so much alarmed for their character and fate, as when he contemplates their propensity to this dangerous vice. He will not fail, therefore, to set a due value on any plan which , without violating the principles to which he is attached, provides a proper cure for it. The instability, injustice, and confusion introduced into the public councils, have, in truth, been the mortal diseases under which popular governments have everywhere perished; as they continue to be the favorite and fruitful topics from which the adversaries to liberty derive their most specious declamations. The valuable improvements made by the American constitutions on the popular models, both ancient and modern, cannot certainly be too much admired; but it would be an unwarrantable partiality, to contend that they have as effectually obviated the danger on this side, as was wished and expected. Complaints are everywhere heard from our most considerate and virtuous citizens, equally the friends of public and private faith, and of public and personal liberty, that our governments are too unstable, that the public good is disregarded in the conflicts of rival parties, and that measures are too often decided, not according to the rules of justice and the rights of the minor party, but by the superior force of an interested and overbearing majority. However anxiously we may wish that these complaints had no foundation, the evidence, of known facts will not permit us to deny that they are in some degree true. It will be found, indeed, on a candid review of our situation, that some of the distresses under which we labor have been erroneously charged on the operation of our governments; but it will be found, at the same time, that other causes will not alone account for many of our heaviest misfortunes; and, particularly, for that prevailing and increasing distrust of public engagements, and alarm for private rights, which are echoed from one end of the continent to the other. These must be chiefly, if not wholly, effects of the unsteadiness and injustice with which a factious spirit has tainted our public administrations.

How do factions cure mischief?

There are two methods of curing the mischiefs of faction: the one, by removing its causes; the other, by controlling its effects.

Who wrote the essay "Republican Government"?

Written by James Madison, this essay defended the form of republican government proposed by the Constitution. Critics of the Constitution argued that the proposed federal government was too large and would be unresponsive to the people. In response, Madison explored majority rule v. minority rights in this essay.

Can an enlightened stateman adjust to the public good?

It is in vain to say that enlightened statesmen will be able to adjust these clashing interests, and render them all subservient to the public good. Enlightened statesmen will not always be at the helm. Nor, in many cases, can such an adjustment be made at all without taking into view indirect and remote considerations, which will rarely prevail over the immediate interest which one party may find in disregarding the rights of another or the good of the whole.

What Is Federalist Number 10?

Why Is Federalist Number 10 Important?

• Federalist No. 10 is possibly the most famous of The Federalist Papers, and is even regarded as one of the highest-quality political writings of all time. Some people even called James Madison the “Father of the Constitution” because of his essays’ influence. Because Federalist No. 10 and the other Federalist Papers were published under a pseudonym...

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What You Need to Know For The Apush Exam – Multiple-Choice

What You Need to Know For The Apush Exam – Essays and Document-Based Questions

Overview

Background

Publication

The question of faction

Madison's arguments

Contemporaneous counterarguments

Modern analysis and reaction

Application