Unit Two Gov020

Question 1

What is the context of Tocqueville’s Democracy in America

Answer 1

He finds a commitment to democracy and equality in the United States that is unknown in Europe. Studying America, he comes to ask three questions

1. What is the new way of life realized in America
2. How does the new way of life function in comparison to the past forms of life (i.e. the aristocracy )
3. What are the problems that arise

Question 2

What is Tocqueville’s goal in writing Democracy in America

Answer 2

Discover the meaning of democracy by observing its application in the country

Question 3

What is the new way of life realized by America, According to Tocqueville

Answer 3

The Social State; equality is dominant and manifests in a couple ways

• Equality is favored and is sought in political, social, and economic institutions
• Equality rhetoric within society transfers to how equality of condition is actualized by government

Question 4

What was the old way of life, or dominant life in European countries, which Tocqueville uses to compare America’s “new way of living”?

Answer 4

Characterized by Aristocracy.

Tocqueville states that class divisions, though depriving a territory of equality, got things done[i.e: funding things, class structure brought oblighation, time for public service] He wonders how can America capture some good components in the new democracy

Question 5

IDENTIFY the Problems did Tocqueville believe would arise in the new democracy?

Answer 5

1. Democracy will lead to tyrnanny of the majority
2. Democracy will lead to a mild of despotism; where people give up their freedoms for a regulatory government.

Question 6

(actually) describe the problem that Tocqueville believed would arise in the social state

Answer 6

Since nothing is prohibited to anyone and wants multiply, a lack of virtuous materialism is created, and private materialism takes place.

Question 7

ExplainPrivate Materialism

Answer 7

An issue Tocqueville believed that would arise in the social state, in which there is endless competition and anxiety because nothing is prohibited or barred to anyone naturally because of equality. No one is assured any permanent station, and there is a risk of losing it all.

Examples: Tocqueville perceives a lack of “noblesse oblige” in America. Also, conventionally, private life is boring while commercial life is lively and boisterous.

Question 8

Describe Virtuous Materialism

Answer 8

One would be more satisfied with what they head, and there would be less competition and desire for progression.

Example: In an aristocracy, certain things are barred to the common individual.

Question 9

Describe Tocqueville’s concept of Tyranny of Majority

Answer 9

This is a problem that Tocqueville perceived would arise out of democracy. He explained a certain spiritual tyranny of the majority where America’s intellectualism and culture would be reduced to lowest and ordinary levels because people are always working and there isn’t much leisure when there’s risk involved.

Example: accessibility to Shakespeare, and modern political correctness
(Need a why)

Question 10

Describe Tocqueville’s concept of a mild despotism

Answer 10

A problem that Tocqueville believed would arise out of the new democracy. Since rampant materialism initiates unequal skill and luck that naturally leads to some people experiencing failure, Americans would subtly give up equal action, love for guranteed results, and equal distribution.
The significance of this cycle is that Americans would give up there liberties in exchange for greater guranteed security from the government; one closer to a welfare state.

Question 11

Identify the political institutions that Tocqueville perceived existed to counteract these problems and preserve liberty .

Answer 11

1. Small government, spec: Regional, local government
2. Jury System

Question 12

Describe how regional, local governments counteract problems of democracy

Answer 12

Tocqueville believed that small governments led to administrative decentralization that citizens could excercise frequently. Small governments are immense in mediating mild despotism. An example of how this works today is school boards.

Question 13

Describe how jury systems help the problems arising in Democracy

Answer 13

Tocqueville believed that the jury system forced citizens to think of something immediately beyond self-interest and promote common good. This counteracts rampant individualism promoted by the social state.

Question 14

Identify elements of democracy in social state

Answer 14

1. Because of equal rights and a degree of concrete equalization, inequality seen as unjustified 2. No one has informal jurisdiction or authority over someone else’s life, and vice versa
2. No castes
3. Individualism, duty to yourself
4. materialism

Question 15

Identify non institutional factors that help counteract problems in the new democracy and describe why these institutions flourish.

Answer 15

1. Religion, moral movements
2. Freedom of association (Like NGOS, business, ideological leagues)
3. Free and protected press
   They flourish because there’s a need for spiritual look, community building, and optimism to counteract tyranny of majority on spirit of the nation.

Question 16

Describe why political parties are agreeable and affordable

Answer 16

1. Deep divisions in the country divide country into factions, like deep religious splits or class divisions, which transfer to splitting the country politically
2. Factions are checked by structures in democratic republic (checks and seperation of powers)
3. We create distance between public powers and government, which prevents tyrannical factions
4. There exists a unity of interest— secuirty and economic growth— underpinning split of parties

Question 17

Why are political parties desirable

Answer 17

Create organization
1. Organize the public on a particular point on interest, increasing accountability in elections and lessening individualism .
2. Serve to organize the elected, reducing the exercise of self-directedness in government
3. Presidentially, works well in attaining an electoral vote; which generates broad legitimacy.

Question 18

Describe the utilities of political parties

Answer 18

1. Control nominations of elections» Parties train future candidates and fund their campaigns.
2. Expand the attention span of the electorate on certain issues; every party has a policy agenda that public can easily follow and subscribe to.

Question 19

Identify the issues characterizing Lincoln’s campaign and presidency

Answer 19

Westward Expansion and question of slavery in those states
How much should the federal government help economic growth
Immigration; German and Irish; brought religious and ethnic diversity +political question of how will they vote/

Question 20

What principles can we extrapolate from lincoln’s presidency

Answer 20

1. political president; ambitious and calculated with his decisions (ex: in the case of the civil war, was not direct with denouncing slavery as he wanted to stop the border states from seceeding
   2.Partisan; was clearly against mexican american war
2. Rhetorical skills
3. Fragmented government; believed that there’s certain things that the individual in society can’t do which should be bridged by government, rather than the government trying to bridge things that is within individual capacity {ex: the people cannot protect themselves from foreign invasion but can […[}

Question 21

Describe how Lincoln thought one was to successfully appeal to public opinion

Answer 21

Success comes with uplifting the individual. This is found in his speech to Washington temperance society where he emphasizes the success of the organization in reforming the individual rather than society as a whole. The significance of the speech emphasizes Lincoln’s skills in rhetoric, as he was able to link the moral reform involved with temperance to the one involved in the growing abolition movement