Constitution Influence Essay
In 1776 the Declaration of Independence was signed and ratified setting America on the fasttrack to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Some documents that encouraged and also followed up on the Declaration was the pamphlet, “Common Sense,” written by Thomas Paine, and also Federalist Paper No. 51 which was written by James Madison. The - now - historical document by Thomas Paine was all about the many reasons why America should unite against Great Britain to gain their independence. It also pushed a lot for a representative government. At the time that Thomas Paine was writing the pamphlet, America had not yet declared Independence and was, in fact, still on the edge about it. “Common Sense” was a big
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These documents were also so close to the actual time that the Constitution was written that they were vying for the Constitution to be ratified. The papers were written by three men who then anonymously published them in a series. The brilliant papers swept the country and talked a lot about different modern day American principles. One such principal, is checks and balances. This is the idea that there should be more than one branch of government so that one branch doesn’t get to strong. This also allows decisions to be made easier and a way to enforce the law. In fact the Federalist Papers say, “It may be a reflection on human nature, that such devices [checks and balances] should be necessary to control the abuses of government. But what is government itself, but the greatest of all reflections on human nature?” (Madison Federalist Papers) Then aligning right next to that statement is the Constitution which says, “All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States...The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America...The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish” (Madison Constitution). This is showing how the opinion of one man influenced a whole government. This governmental idea changed our Constitution and even our society. The concept of checks and balances reformed the whole American Constitution, in a way that supported the people, was run by the people, and was loved by the people. In the end, the Constitution was drastically changed for the better because one man shared his
The Constitution of the United States was written in 1787, but there was a grapple for its ratification that went on until about two decades after the ratification. Members of Congress believed that the first government of the United States or the Articles of Confederation, needed to be adjusted while others did not want anything to change. After the Revolutionary War, the people did not want a strong central government, because it reminded them too much of what they were trying to escape from. Under the Articles, each state had their own laws, and the need for a new Constitution was desired by many. The Constitution of 1787 created huge debates, arguments and splits in the nation that lasted for several year after its ratification between people who
“The constant aim is to divide and arrange the several offices in such a manner as that they may be a check in the other.” (Federalist Paper #51) (Doc C) The branches had some control of each other, so they can’t overpower each other. This helped balance the power so one branch doesn’t become an overpowered beast compared to the other branches.
In the eighteenth century there was a mix of opposition of independence, and a hope that the new nation would become a home of freedom. Thomas Paine’s argument was that America needs to gain independence from England. Some of the reasons Paine wrote Common Sense is because of unnecessary wars, monarchial government, and the way Britain treated America. Regardless of Paine’s popularity with Common Sense, Jonathan Boucher was a minister who explained his opposition of the revolutionary movement in his sermons. He believed if God wanted America to be independent it would have happened, and it is our duty as citizens to obey the laws because we will be disobedient to God.
On January 10, 1776 (during the American Revolution) Thomas Paine published a pamphlet titled “Common Sense”. In this he sets his arguments in favor of American independence, the pamphlet was written in clear and persuasive prose. It inspired people in the Thirteen colonies to declare and fight for egalitarian government from Great Britain and because of this the pamphlet was an immediate sensation. The pamphlet was originally published anonymously and was one of the most influential pamphlets in America.
These checks and balances ensure a separation of powers and prevents Madison’s fear of corruption due to too much
Thomas Paine was a great writer and was the editor of the Pennsylvania Magazine. Paine was strong in his beliefs and wrote Common Sense. The Declaration of Independence and Common Sense are two well known documents that share remarkably similar ideals regarding the ongoing crisis in America, but they also have some differences. Common Sense is a pamphlet consisting of forty-nine pages on why Paine believes the thirteen American colonies should break off from Great Britain. Throughout the Pamphlet, Paine creates a political argument in an attempt to rally the people together to fight for independence.
Another reason it was so influential is because it was sold very cheaply so as many people could read it as possible. It also used “common” language and was not seen as aristocratic like the writings of Jefferson. Thomas Paine also swayed many colonists into revolution because of his anger. In Common Sense Thomas Paine seems very angry and emotionally distraught which to many people made the cause seem more apparent. Here is an example of his anger “But where, says some, is the King of America?
How come no one could ever take over the government? Well, we have the writers of the constitution to thank for this. WIthout the constitution, there would be a tyranny. The constitution was written in 1787. Its main purpose is to give our government a solid direction, and to describe the roles of the three branches in our government: The judicial, legislative, and executive branches.
Federalism helped the Constitution guard against tyranny by specifying which powers belong to the Federal government and which ones belong to the State government. This separation leads to a double security so that the state government can watch the federal government and the federal can watch the state. James Madison states in his Federalist Papers #51(Document A), “power surrendered by the people is first divided between two
In the winter of 1776, during American Revolution, the still young America faced three major dilemmas: their seemingly imminent defeat, the moral debate between the Whigs and the British loyalists, and the panic and confusion of the American public. In efforts to settle the three American dilemmas, Thomas Paine wrote The Crisis No. 1 in December of 1776. In his work, Paine aimed to calm the American public and convince them to stand up to the British, and turn the war into an American victory. Paine was very successful in this, and his paper was proclaimed as one of the most persuasive works of the American Revolution. Paine’s
Federalist 51 is a primary source from the time of the creation of the constitution. It was written by James Madison on February 8, 1788. It is an essay describing the Constitution 's usage of checks and balances system and why it was needed. At the time, the constitution was newly written. So, under the pseudonym of Publius; James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and James Jay: three federalists (people who supported the constitution and favored a strong central government with power shared between states), wrote the Federalist Papers.
The Enlightenment thinkers also influenced us with their intelligence and discoveries. It is also believed that the failures of the Articles of Confederation influenced the United States Constitution because the founding fathers did not want for their government to fail, like it did with the articles. Without the influences of the United States Constitution, the United States government today would not be the same. For example without the United States Constitution, marriage rights could be denied to same sex couple, we would have our democratic right to vote for a president every 4 years, and etc. None of these things would have existed if it were not for the influences of the United States Constitution.
Thomas Paine was one of the best known political philosopher and pamphleteer back during the 18th century. “Common Sense” was the first published pamphlet that proclaimed the independence of America and one of his most famous piece of work. How did Thomas Paine influence the declaration of independence by writing “Common Sense”? “Common Sense” convinced a great amount of moderates to become patriots, additionally, some loyalist were persuaded by his writing. Also, he was able to express his feelings and wrote in a way that people commonly spoke.
Due to his many experiences while living in Great Britain, he grew a desire to fight for the oppressed and often questioned the authority the British Monarchy had over the American colony. Thomas Paine wrote an influential Pamphlet “Common Sense” a scathing attack on the monarchial tyranny over the American colony and the significance of American independence. Thomas Paine’s ideas in this pamphlet were not original, however were more accessible to the masses due to the clear and direct way he wrote. His pamphlet helped to inspire The Declaration of Independence written by Thomas Jefferson. The Declaration of Independence contains a list of grievances against King George III and justifications for the assertion of the right for independence.
Thomas Paine essentially wrote Common Sense for the common man. Being a pamphlet, its structure and simplicity made reading easy for those who were literate. Its minimalism enabled citizens in the colonies to unite under one common cause — independence against Britain. He was inspired by both John Locke’s The Second Treatise of Government as well as Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s