Religion and the U.S. Constitution HIST 121 - American History to 1877 May 2008 THESIS: The Constitution reflects our founder’s views of a secular government‚ protecting the freedom of any belief or unbelief. Some will argue religion‚ specifically Christianity‚ played a large role in the creation of this great nation’s government‚ the United States Constitution; however the facts reveal otherwise. The historian‚ Robert Middlekauff‚ observed‚ "the idea that the Constitution expressed
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Robert D. Putnam has argued that non-political organizations in civil society are vital for democracy. They result in building social capital‚ trust and shared values‚ which politically‚ help hold society together. Putnam’s civil society is the idea that positive outcomes in government are a product of civic community‚ for example‚ networks of trust such as‚ soccer club or choral society (Putnam). However‚ social capital may also lead to negative outcomes if the political institution and democracy
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One of the most pervasive values in U.S. American culture is individualism‚ and understanding its effects can help illuminate many aspects of the culture. In American culture‚ in order to succeed and achieve one’s personal best‚ one must be strong and independent. In more collective cultures‚ accomplishments and successes may be viewed foremost as an honor to the group‚ for example‚ how it reflects upon one’s family or hometown community. In the US‚ a person’s success is more likely to be attributed
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‘Tyranny of the majority’ is a concept that the liberty of the people is restricted because of the socially expected conformation to customs‚ beliefs and opinions‚ and attitudes that are accepted by the majority as the right way of thinking (Morasch‚ 2016). Resistance to the conformity results in renowned shame and exclusion from the majority people‚ making the revolter an outcast. John Mill was a strong proponent of individualism‚ stressed the importance of an eccentric life and believed that unique
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- Individualism and Equality‚ Andre Beteille examines the relationship between individualism and equality at the level of values. He has focussed upon explaining the works of renowned anthropologist‚ Louis Dumont and famous historian‚ Alexis de Tocqueville. He also emphasises upon their contrasting works on the tumultuous and impassive relationship between individualism and equality. The relationship between individualism and equality has been avidly discussed over the years and has left many awestruck
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document 5‚ Alexis de Tocqueville‚ a visitor from France‚ states that a person happily walking the streets of the city could not be found. Tocqueville goes on to say that the city is nothing more than a “filthy sewer. Since Alexis de Tocqueville is from France‚ his description of Manchester is valuable insight‚ because of their unbiased nature. The same document‚ document 5‚ says that the civilized man turns back to being savage in this environment‚ an observation that Tocqueville believes is brought
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also acknowledges the difficulty of truly nurturing individuality in a society in which the majority’s opinion stifles that of the minority. He takes issue with the illegitimate power society has over the individual. He worries that this “social tyranny” hinders the self-cultivation of the individual. Although he fears that the despotism of custom will lead to the stagnation of society‚ his solution to this problem ironically requires that we adopt his concern for well being of others as custom.
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Marshall McLuhan claims that any change taking place around us is an extension of ourselves‚ or‚ in other words‚ any medium is an extension of a human body or mind or senses. For an instance‚ the hammer is an extension of a human’s arm‚ the wheel is an extension of a human’s leg‚ and the medium of a language helps us to put our thoughts and emotions into words. According to this‚ things around us would not be the medium unless it does its function. Like‚ an electric light itself is a medium without
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e. following the rule of the most numerous or active part‚ the majority‚ anonymous social force that destroys the freedoms of individuals. This is due to the fact that the needs and wants of the minority are not taken into consideration as the formation of any individuality is prevented. These people only act in interest of the majority. For instance‚ the ban of gay marriage in Spain started as a tyranny of the heterosexual majority‚ but it is allowed since 2005 (1). Another example of this may be
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Compares Locke’s theory to playing the card game with the cards facing up and trying to reach a unanimous vote With the cards faced up‚ tyranny of minority can occur Tyranny of majority can occur if a majority vote was required to protect the greatest good of the greatest number Solution to the problem: - Rawls corrects this by assigning people in the state of nature‚ the motive to fair-mindedness
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