Philosophical Roots of American Government

Philosophical Roots of American Government

The philosophical and political resources that early American political leaders turned to as guidelines to be used in order to form "a more perfect government" will be reviewed in this paper.

Some of the Hallmarks of the American Government

When the founding fathers were working to create a new government -- independent of the British -- they used theories and philosophies from great thinkers in the past. The principal concern for the founders was the relationship between the government and the people. In the text, American Government (Heineman, et al.) the author explains that during the Constitutional Convention the Federalists (who supported the proposed Constitution following the convention in 1787) and the anti-Federalists (who did not support the proposed Constitution) went head-to-head in their debates over what the Constitution should be and what it should do.

What were the theories and strategies of government that the founders referenced to come up with the American Constitution?

For example, in Aristotle's work, Politics, the iconic Greek philosophers emphasized that the people "…should have a significant role in their own governance"; the democratic ideals put forth by Aristotle indicated that democracy was the "most virtuous form of government" (although not the ideal form of government) (Heineman, 20). Another ancient idea of democracy was also taken into consideration, that of Marsiglio of Padua (1280-1343), who believed that laws should be created by "…the people of body of citizens" which is the "more weighty part" of the government (Heineman, 21).

In the French Vindiciae (1579), the king is to be "the servant to the public" and while the people are the owners of the "commonwealth" (seen as a vessel), the king is just the pilot, helping to steer. This is also a philosophy that takes its source from the concept of democracy. At the Constitutional Convention a great deal of attention was paid to the writings of John Locke. His social contract put forward the notion that citizens at some point give their consent to live under a "certain political structure" and that requires a social contract.

John Locke is often seen as the "…philosopher of the American Revolution," Heineman explains. Locke's view was that in the early period of human existence, mankind lived in a state of nature, but though it was reasonably pleasant, there were problems. And how were those problems to be solved? Locke's view was the people then created a "social contract" -- a government -- and that government would serve the people's needs and wishes and would protect liberties and property. But the social contract Locke described would restrict government so its power won't interfere with citizens' rights.

Among the hallmarks of Locke's democratic philosophy: a) citizens have a role to play through their representative government; b) leaders in the government cannot rule in "tyrannical fashion"; and c) common law would keep citizens protected from "arbitrary government" (Heineman, 24-25). In addition to John Locke's writings, others that were cited by the founders in their push to develop a democracy included Montesquieu, Blackstone, Cicero and others.