Why were nineteenth-century liberals so fixated on constitution-making and constitutional reform? The nineteenth century saw drastic political and social transformations across Europe‚ marked by the decline of absolute monarchies and the rise of liberal thought. For liberals‚ constitutions became indispensable for protecting individual freedoms‚ stabilising governance‚ and creating more inclusive political systems (Sellinger‚ P341). Prominent thinkers like Alexis de Tocqueville and John Stuart Mill
Premium
liberals are wary of democracy due to some hindering factors that reject traditional liberal views. One factor is that liberal democracy implies the ideologies in majoritarianism. This view entails that the ‘tyranny of the majority’ has a significant influence over political decisions. Majority groups dominate and therefore allow individual sovereignty and minority rights to be subsided‚ this under representation of the less dominate groups could class on an infringement of their freedom‚ contradicting
Free Human rights Democracy Liberalism
the way to Lexington and Concord to antiquated metal signs corroding in the landfill reading ‘Whites only’. To justify a safe and prosperous life‚ rebellions and protests must occur- until the minority becomes heard over the deafening shout of the majority‚ there cannot truly be peace. Oscar Wilde’s claim that ‘it is through disobedience that progress has been made‚ through disobedience and through rebellion’ has never been more accurate than it is today‚ especially when weighed against a powerful
Premium Civil disobedience Martin Luther King, Jr. Nonviolence
jarring horn section score is heard as the title Modern Times appears. The music proceeds with a series of loud horn stabs which imply a presence of tyranny. The music then calms down while the credits roll‚ but‚ returns again when the title Modern Times re-appears. The sound establishes a connection between the subject of modernity and tyranny. Furthermore‚ the next scene exemplifies how the music connects to the themes of the movie. The visual symbolism‚ or juxtaposition of the mass of sheep
Premium Charlie Chaplin Silent film
Locke – 2nd Treatise * State of Nature – All men are originally in a state of nature. A man in this original state is bound by the laws of nature‚ but he is otherwise able to live‚ act‚ and dispose of his possessions as he sees fit. More important‚ human beings‚ free from the arbitrary laws of other men‚ have an obligation to protect the interests of each other‚ since they are all equally children of God. They also have an obligation to punish those who go against God’s will and attempt to
Free Sociology Marxism Social contract
Nha Vo Dr. Jason J. Blazevic POLS 1100 June 10th 2013 Antifederalist vs. Federalist After declaring our country is free from Great Britain‚ our founding fathers wanted to create a democracy based government where tyranny would essentially be diminished. The founding fathers soon find themselves agree to disagree‚ divided in different opinion on how the government should be created‚ so they separated themselves into two political groups: the Federalist and the Antifederalist. The Federalist
Premium United States Constitution United States
referendum would have to be held. This principle prevents the possibility that a future government would simply dismantle constitutional reforms already made. The disadvantages of referendums can be said that some issues may be too complex for the majority of the citizens to understand and make a judgement on. We may be better educated then ever but some political questions may be too difficult and technical‚ if people don’t understand the question they are being asked in the referendum they could
Premium United Kingdom Democracy Government
against creating parties. James Madison describes factions in Federalist Papers #10 as "damaging." He said that factions would destroy liberty or would create a society with the citizens sharing the same ideology. However‚ a democracy is all about the majority of people having a say. How can people do this? There are ways to protect the rights of those people through a series of checks and balances in the government‚ as discussed by James Madison in Federalist Papers
Premium
large electoral vote. For example‚ there can be a candidate that does not get one single vote in‚ but they can still be elected by winning the popular vote in the bigger states‚ that have more number of electoral voters. Even if a candidate wins the majority of the smaller states‚ they will not win presidency because it does not have enough electoral votes. A candidate may have a high overall popular vote; however the one who wins is the one with the highest electoral
Premium President of the United States Elections Election
In an effort to reimagine politics and diverge from the fanciful teachings of the ancients‚ three optimistic realists emerged to begin a philosophical revolution. The garden of modern politics was begun by Machiavelli who cleared the land of the stones of antiquated virtue and tilled the soil. Then came Hobbes‚ who added the fertilizer of enlightened self-interest‚ the water of reason‚ and the seeds of human nature. Finally came Locke who‚ upon seeing that Hobbes’ seeds had grown into weeds of despotic
Premium Monarchy Political philosophy Absolute monarchy