Deck 2: The Revolution and the Constitution Origins of the Democratic Debate

Question 1

Explain the Articles of Confederation.

Answer 1

Students' answers may vary.
The Articles of Confederation were the first written U.S.Constitution, ratified by the states in 1781, establishing a loose confederation among the former colonies under a weak national government.

Question 2

What were the two interpretations of human nature at the time of the founding?

Answer 2

Students' answers may vary.
The basic issue of the democratic debate is human nature.The Federalists held a pessimistic view of human nature and believed that good government could not be founded on the idea of goodness in its participants.The Federalists believed any goodness in human nature was most likely to be found in elites.While they recognized that dangerous qualities in human nature might also show up in the governing elite, they held a greater fear of the raw human nature of the masses, and believed that the history of experiments in popular democracy supported their view.Anti-federalists, on the other hand, believed that ordinary individuals had modest aspirations to live a life of comfort, decency, and dignity, and that any negative tendencies could be counteracted with religious and moral instruction.They feared human nature among elites due to the corrupting effect of power, especially if connections between governors and citizens were distant, and the instruments for abuse and corruption were nearby .

Question 3

Explain the theory of federalism.

Answer 3

Students' answers may vary.
Federalism is a system in which power is divided between the central government and the states.The Constitution of the United States is celebrated for creating this novel system.Alexander Hamilton and especially James Madison applauded the virtues of this federalism in The Federalist Papers .

Question 4

Explain the Great Compromise.

Question 5

What were the central tenets of republic ideology, and how did they shape the thinking of the American revolutionaries?

Question 6

Great Britain used _____ to raise funds to pay for debt incurred during the French and Indian War.

A)the Sugar Act
B)the Stamp Act
C)the Sugar and Stamp Acts
D)None of the above

Question 7

Which of the following accurately describes conditions in America in 1763?

A)America was on the brink of revolution.
B)Americans felt little allegiance to the British.
C)British administration of colonial America was lax.
D)Colonial society was marked by little concern for rights.

Question 8

Who were the Federalists and the Anti-federalists?

Question 9

What is the importance of the Declaration of Independence?

Question 10

What were the guiding principles of the authors of the Constitution? How were they embodied in the institutions of the new political system? Compare and contrast these principles with the revolutionary spirit of 1776.

Question 11

Explain the implications of Shays's Rebellion.

Question 12

Explain the differences between the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan.

Question 13

Republicanism is the

A)body of thought that shaped the political activities of Americans and infused the colonists with the revolutionary spirit of 1776.
B)political thought associated with the ruling parties in Parliament.
C)belief in an extended republic as the solution to the problems of faction.
D)belief that human nature is selfish and requires a strong central government to control it.

Question 14

The author of the revolutionary pamphlet Common Sense was _____.

A)Thomas Jefferson
B)Samuel Adams
C)Benjamin Franklin
D)Thomas Paine

Question 15

Analyze how the Declaration of Independence illustrates both ideas associated with Lockean liberalism and popular democracy.

Question 16

Federalists and Anti-federalists fought over the ratification of the U.S.Constitution.Discuss how the two sides differed on human nature, the proper scale of political life, the nature of representation, separation of powers/checks and balances, the purpose of government, and stability and change.

Question 17

Explain the theory of Republicanism.

Question 18

What is "Common Sense"?

Question 19

The Declaration of Independence

A)has not been a source of inspiration for women and African Americans because the founding fathers hypocritically meant it to apply only to white males.
B)said that the primary role of government was to promote order and stability in a society.
C)had a preamble that was then used in the Constitution.
D)established equality as the basis for American political thought, and life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness as universal rights.

Question 20

Who of the following was not an author of the Federalist Papers ?

A)James Madison
B)Alexander Hamilton
C)Thomas Jefferson
D)John Jay

Question 21

At the Constitutional Convention the institution of slavery was

A)unanimously approved by the delegates.
B)abolished for violating the principle of equality.
C)protected in order to maintain unity among the states.
D)never discussed because it was so controversial.

Question 22

The Great Compromise was also known as the _____.

A)Connecticut Compromise
B)Marshall Plan
C)Monroe Doctrine
D)New Jersey Plan

Question 23

What did opponents of the new Constitution call themselves?

A)Federalists
B)Jeffersonian-Republicans
C)Whigs
D)Anti-federalists

Question 24

The new state constitutions of 1776

A)refused to include bills of rights.
B)weakened executive powers.
C)strengthened the power of the judiciary.
D)None of the above is correct.

Question 25

The Federalists expected that the branches of the national government would defend their powers from each other because

A)those in power would be all-around good guys.
B)they would have an institutional incentive to protect their own interests.
C)wise and virtuous elites would always be at the helm.
D)they would realize that an energetic presidency would be fatal to the republic.

Question 26

The Virginia Plan included

A)making the national government primary.
B)the power to veto state legislation.
C)reducing the states to a subordinate position.
D)All of the above are correct.

Question 27

The foremost reason the authors of the Constitution designed checks and balances was to

A)restrain the monarchical tendencies in the presidency.
B)control the lust for power that was characteristic of senators.
C)ensure that the federal government would be too weak to act effectively.
D)control the pressures for popular democratic action in the House of Representatives.

Question 28

Under the Articles of Confederation

A)the central government had extensive military powers and was led by a strong executive.
B)each state's representation in Congress was based on its population.
C)no amendment could be made without unanimous agreement of all state legislatures.
D)Congress had substantial powers to tax and regulate interstate commerce.

Question 29

During the 1780s, small farmers pressed for stay and tender laws because

A)political agitators, such as Daniel Shays, actively organized a national network to foment rebellion.
B)inflation and an expansion in the money supply meant they could not afford to pay for manufactured goods.
C)a shortage of hard money and higher taxes threatened many of them with foreclosures on their farms.
D)All of the above are correct.

Question 30

The constitutional provision that allows Congress to override the president's veto is an example of _____.

A)bicameralism
B)checks and balances
C)federalism
D)executive privilege

Question 31

The Declaration of Independence borrowed heavily from the theories of _____.

A)Burke
B)Hobbes
C)Rousseau
D)Locke

Question 32

Why can it be said that the original democratic debate was "won" by elite Democrats?

A)They destroyed the popular democratic vision of equality and republicanism.
B)The obstacles to popular democracy were established by the Constitution.
C)They secured passage of the Bill of Rights to protect personal liberty.
D)The national government immediately began turning the country into a world power.

Question 33

In which of the following did Madison lay out his theory of factions?

A)Federalist 10
B)Federalist 51
C)Common Sense
D)Declaration of Independence

Question 34

Regarding human nature, the Anti-Federalists

A)were more pessimistic than their Federalist counterparts.
B)believed that republican institutions could help foster public virtue.
C)believed that all people were naturally good.
D)felt that elites were more likely to possess wisdom and virtue.

Question 35

What was the single most important factor leading to the Constitutional Convention?

A)Concern that the national government was becoming too powerful
B)Instability within the states that raised doubts about Americans' capacity for republican government
C)Widespread popular pressure to revise the Articles to make them more responsive to the state
D)The economic interests of the delegates, particularly their express determination to protect their personal property

Question 36

The most important legacy of the Anti-federalists was _____.

A)judicial review
B)the Declaration of Independence
C)the Bill of Rights
D)American federalism

Question 37

The chief obstacle to ratification of the Constitution was

A)the power to tax individuals rather than states.
B)the failure to abolish slavery.
C)the absence of a national bill of rights.
D)concern about the power of an aristocratic Senate.

Question 38

The Anti-Federalists

A)wanted representatives who would filter out popular passions.
B)wanted representatives who would mirror the people.
C)preferred the Senate to the House.
D)All of the above are correct.

Question 39

The Federalists and Anti-federalists agreed that

A)government institutions had to be designed to control the worst impulses in human nature.
B)it was essential that the national government be dominated by elites.
C)the primary end of politics was to maximize popular participation in political affairs.
D)representatives should not mirror the people's goals but filter out their bad impulses.

Question 40

The ratification of the Constitution required a long and difficult struggle because the

A)Anti-federalists had set the terms of the political debate.
B)Federalists could not agree about their program and political strategy.
C)Constitution spelled the end of the popular democratic experiment of 1776.
D)Anti-federalists had much better access to newspapers and pamphlets.