Unit 1 1 Nr V Cr

Foundations of American Government

Government Quiz
You will need a blank sheet paper
Pen or pencil is fine
Clear your desk of everything else
This quiz is based off last night’s required reading (Chapter 1.1)
Five multiple choice questions
One short answer question

1. What is Government?
One of the defining features of a civilization is that it has a government.
What is government and what does it do?
Define government :

The earliest government dates back to:
ancient Greece.
the Declaration of Independence.
ancient Egypt.
the Magna Carta.

1. What is Government?
One of the defining features of a civilization is that it has a government.
What is government and what does it do?
Define government :

Which of the following is among the purposes of government outlined in the Preamble to the Constitution?
defending the nation against foreign enemies
insuring order and domestic tranquility
promoting the general welfare of the citizens
all of the above

Natural Rights Where do you want to live?

Where do you want to live? Freeland Leaderland
Total freedom
No job required
No education required
No rulers
No laws
Nothing is against the law
Entirely ruled by ONE person
They decide your job
How much money you make
Where you live
What you can and can not do on your free-time.
Total control
Will always be safe

Freeland

Leaderland

Where do you want to live? Freeland Leaderland
Total freedom
No job required
No education required
No rulers
No laws
Nothing is against the law
Entirely ruled by ONE person
They decide your job
How much money you make
Where you live
What you can and can not do on your free-time.
Total control
Will always be safe

Where do you want to live?
Freeland
Leaderland

Natural Rights
Freeland is just like first grade recess
remember what that was like?
It was a true state of nature!
What can you assume a true “state of nature” is?
A “state of nature” is defined as life without government.
Your only thought is: “How do I survive?”

What will you do?
Pretend you are invisible and no one will ever know what you do…
You are walking down the street and you notice that the doors of a bank are wide open. There are huge piles of money sitting on the floor.
No one else is there (visible or invisible).
No one will ever know whether you go in and take some or all of the money or if you just keep walking.
What will you do?

What will you do?
Take the money
Leave the money

Natural Rights
After discussing this scenario, is a government necessary in shaping how people behave?
So…
what does a government do?
What is your view of human nature?
(do you think most people would take the money)?
Why?
What drives most people?
selfishness? guilt and fear?

What drives people?
Selfishness
Fear
Guilt
Morality
Something else

Natural Rights
Thomas Hobbes, a natural rights philosopher, would have argued that all of you would take the money.
Therefore: the rest of us would form a government because you would!
Hobbes’ view of man-kind is very negative

Thomas Hobbes
"During the time men live without a common power to keep them all in awe, they are in that conditions called war; and such a war, as if of every man, against every man.”
"No arts; no letters; no society; and which is worst of all, continual fear, and danger of violent death: and the life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short.“
What is Hobbes trying to tell us in these quotes?

Thomas Hobbes
The Leviathan
Written during the English Civil War (1651)
Hobbes believed that we need a STRONG central government
without it – there is chaos (state of nature)

John Locke
John Locke, also a natural rights philosopher would say SOME of you would take the money that we talked about earlier, but NOT all of you would because not all of us are bad.
He had a little more positive view of human nature than did Hobbes.

Natural Rights
Thomas Hobbes and John Locke would both have said that we form governments out of necessity though.
People form governments, laws, “polis” ONLY to survive!
Hobbes would say if we don’t form governments, we will all be dead because we are only out for ourselves.
A state of nature is a state of WAR.
Locke said “Government has no other end, but the preservation of property.”

Locke and Hobbes would most likely agree that:
those of royal birth should rule the state.
the state exists to protect the rights of the people.
government should be eliminated.

Why is Locke important to us?
Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence relying very heavily on the writings of John Locke.
We’ll look at some of Locke’s ideas and then you can compare him to Jefferson.

Comparing Locke to Jefferson The Declaration of Independence The reason we created our own country!

Jefferson
“ All mankind... being all equal and independent, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty or possessions.”
A legitimate government can not exist until people give their consent to it (social contract)
If government violates the natural rights of the people, it violates the social contract. A violation would signify a reason and a right to alter or overthrow the government.
Locke

Once the students have had time to finish looking at the Declaration, use the next 3 slides to compare their answers. (page 40)

Locke Jefferson
“ All mankind... being all equal and independent, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty or possessions.”
“ All men are created equal, endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

Locke Jefferson
A legitimate government can not exist until people give their consent to it (social contract)
“ Governments are instituted among men deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

Locke Jefferson
If government violates the natural rights of the people, it violates the social contract. A violation would signify a reason and a right to alter or overthrow the government.
“ Whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it and to institute a new government.”

Natural Rights
Hobbes and Locke were quite ‘revolutionary’
Until this time, people believed that governments (monarchs) got their permission (consent) to rule from GOD.
divine right of kings (write that term down!)
The King, and his family, were in power because God wanted them to be.
(When Natural Rights Philosophers started to argue that governments should get their permission to rule from the people – it was a crazy new idea)

Which statement about the social contract theory is NOT true?
The state was created voluntarily by a free people.
The state is a natural extension of people's family structure.
Governmental powers are granted by the people.
Governmental powers may be limited by the people.

Natural Rights
According to the Natural Rights philosophers like Locke and Hobbes:
What is a ‘state of nature’?
John Locke wrote “Where there is no law, there is no freedom.” Explain what he meant.
Why does government exist?
What are ‘natural rights’?
Who gives the government permission to rule?
In Federalist #51, James Madison wrote, “If men were angels, no government would be necessary.”
Do you agree or disagree? Explain.
Would Locke and Hobbes agree or disagree? Explain.

CLASSICAL REPUBLICANISM
"Man is by nature a political animal“ – Aristotle
It is our nature to live by “polis” (in groups)

Classical Republicanism
Strong desire to do what is best for the common good
What’s best for society as a whole
Benefits not isolated to one class, etc.
Citizens & gov’t work together for what’s best for everyone

Society and citizens share in:
Civic Virtue
Moral Education
Small, uniform communities

Civic Virtue
Civic Virtue
One of the most crucial elements!
Set aside personal interests in the name of the common good
Citizens expected to participate in gov’t

Civic Virtue
Personal interests considered secondary:
Making money
Family time
Personal development
To maintain dedication to government, individual rights limited:
Little privacy
Little or no freedom or religion
Little or no freedom of speech & expression

Think about this…
What is the ‘common good’?
Does the ‘common good’ always appear as good?
Who defines the ‘common good’?
Does the ‘common good’ help everyone or just the majority ?

Think about this…
Does placing your personal interests second to the ‘common good’ make people content?
How do the priorities of civic virtue & personal interests compare today?
Did the limitation of certain personal rights really ensure the ‘common good’?

Scenario
Bill wants to build a meditation area in his backyard so that he and his family can positively focus their inner spirits daily.
Bill goes to the city government to obtain a permit to construct this meditation area.
What would a Classical Republican government say to this request? Why?

Moral Education
Civic virtue does not come easy
Established Religion
Moral Education
Civic Virtue

Moral Education cont’d.
“ Why can’t you be more like…?”
“ You better behave!! Santa’s watching!”
Every generation has a responsibility for the next generation
Role model for your younger brothers & sisters

Think about this…
Does Moral Education still take place today? Think of an example?
Is it right for the state to morally educate the population?
Does Moral Education violate your rights or does it help to protect them in the end?
What responsibility do you have to educate future generations? Explain.

Small Uniform Communities
CR works best in small settings
Everyone knows & cares about everyone
Everyone is very similar
Great diversity leads to factions
Factions = personal interests
Attempts to control as much as possible
Established religion
Accumulation of wealth
Ownership of property

Small Uniform Communities
The more you have:
The more you want
The more you fear losing what you have
The more you break the rules to get or protect
The more you ignore others
et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.
All focus needs to be on the community
Fear of money making or economic growth

Think about this…
Do we still limit diversity in our communities today? How?
Does the idea of uniform communities oppose the ideas America was founded upon?
How does the idea of personal economic growth today compare to the classical era?
Is personal economic growth good or bad for the state?

What is the government’s role in achieving what is good for human beings?
“ Polis” is all encompassing, no distinction between public and private spheres.
Moral education and defense are primary goals of government
Thoughtful deliberation is required, wise leaders are required
Focus on duties to community.
Natural Rights
Limited Government-human “good” is found in private sphere
Government is there to secure the blessings of liberty.
Government can not be trusted.
Focus on individual rights.

Classical Republicanism vs. Natural Rights
Humans have the capacity to speak and reason well, achieve excellence, be morally virtuous
Put the community interest first
Humans are interdependent
Natural Rights
Human beings are free and equal, autonomous, self-directed
Desire life, property, and liberty, primarily interested in private good
Living together is by agreement-a necessary evil

Which kind of society do we have the in United States today?
Natural rights
Classical republicanism
Both
Neither

How did the Founding Fathers use these ideas??? Took aspects from BOTH philosophies and applied them.

Draw a chart like this below. Fill in with details comparing Classical Republicanism with Natural Rights
Class. Rep.
Natural Rights

Enter question text...
Natural rights philosophy
Classical republicanism

Homework! 6 th grade style worksheet write terms, understand them There will be a nine question quiz next class based on the work-sheet

Types of Government: Quiz
Take your homework out
I will immediately trash the work of any copiers
Quiz will be in 5 minutes
CRAM!
Good luck!

Types of Gov’t
Different countries have different types of government.
Match each type of government in the box with its description below.
Absolute Monarchy
Anarchy
Authoritarianism
Communism
Classical Republic
Despotism
Democracy
Feudalism
Totalitarianism
Absence of government
Government based on religion or subject to religious authority
Government based on rule of the people (via voting)
Government in which a group rules with unlimited authority
A political and economic system in medieval Europe, based on holding all land by nobility and the homage of the lands tenants
Government that regulates nearly every aspect of public and private life
Government ruled by an individual with hereditary right to rule
A small representative form a small group of elected people run the government and represent the peoples needs
Government ruled by an authoritarian party that controls the economy and aims to achieve a higher social order
Government rule by a single person (a despot) who rules with absolute political power and uses his rule tyrannically

Anarchy!!! Despotism

Create a Government

Basis behind Classical Republicanism
Representative Government
Put the common good ahead of individual interests
Feared Factions
Virtues: include helping others and generosity
Run for office & serve in the military
Participate in community
Vote!
Participate in government
Admire those with Civic virtue
Moral Education
Choose wise leaders
Small communities are better because people “know” one another.
Homogeneity
(should be taught to be the same-you are either with us or against us)
One Uniform religion
Discouraged from anything other than politics

Unit 1 1 Nr V Cr

by David Osman on Aug 27, 2008

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