American Government AP
Chapter 2 – Constitution
Name______________________
Federalist Papers
Directions: Using Appendixes II and III in the back of our textbook, read Federalist Papers # 10
and #51, then answer the questions below.
Federalist Paper #10
1. When was it written?
2. Who was the author?
3. What is the actual title? (Look on-line for this answer)
4. Why were all of the Federalist Papers signed “Publius”?
5. How does the author propose to deal with factions?
6. If alive today, how do you think the author would feel about the involvement of special
interest groups in the political process?
7. Should we place new checks on these factions in order to preserve democracy? Why or
why not?
Identify what you believe to be the three most important lines in this paper and briefly explain what
each line is saying.
1.
2.
3.
Federalist Paper #51 – “If all men were angels, government would not be necessary.”
1. When was it written?
2. Who was the author?
3. What is the title? (Look on-line for this answer)
4. What were the primary Constitutional issues addressed in this paper? (3)
5. Which branch of government does the author believe to be most powerful? Why?
6. What does the author mean when he says, “Ambition must be made to counteract ambition”?
Two summaries of the Federalist papers No. 10 and No. 51.
The Federalist No. 10
James Madison starts of this paper by saying that the strong Constitution has the control to deal with violence
and aggression caused by factions. Madison says these factions do not help those in favor of a democratic
government because they cause instability in the government. He makes this clear by saying “The friend of
popular governments, never finds himself so much more alarmed for their character and fate, as when he
contemplates their propensity to this dangerous vice.” However, Madison knows that no matter what, there
will always be factions in the American society because of the vast opinion differences. One of the biggest
sources that factions come from are from the distribution of land. There are two main ones, those with lots and
land and those with little land. Even though these groups conflict, the government is obliged to guard the
interests of each group. Madison stated two ways to control factions, which were to remove its causes and
controlling its effect. Madison says next that he worries about corruption of members of the new government,
but says it is less likely because representative will be chosen by a large population. He also discusses the
differences between a republic and a democracy, along with that the main goal of the Constitution is to make
all 13 states secure from threats and invasion.
James Madison makes very good arguments in this essay about adopting the Constitution, especially by
starting off with ways to control factions like in the Shay’s Rebellion incident. Justice must be served and
these factions cannon control government like that. However, he makes it clear that protecting individual
rights is important. Even though there would be large populations voting for a representative, I do not think
that will necessarily stop corruption of high ranked officials based on faction influence.
The Federalist No. 51
Madison begins this essay with talk of having three separate branches of government, the Judicial,
Legislative, and Executive. He explains that each branch should be independent and have the same amount of
power. He later talks about why there should be restrictions on power. He says that “if men were angels, no
government would be necessary.” He stresses that the government must be able to control the people, but also
control itself. Madison later says that in most republic governments the legislative branch is the most
powerful, so that’s why there is a Senate and House of Representatives. He also comes back to the point of
protecting individual rights, specifically the minority. The government cannot support large groups ganging
up on smaller groups and ultimately getting whatever they desire. Madison ends with the idea that majority
must agree on justice and general good for society to be balanced.
I think the idea of three separate branches with equal amounts of power is a great idea. You can’t let one
branch of government have more authority than the others. Also I agree with Madison’s statement that the
government must be able to control the people. Although he stresses individual rights, if the government is
unable to control its citizens, there is no point of it. I think minority rights are important on lesser political
issues, unlike liberty or individual rights.
Read more: http://socyberty.com/government/federalist-papers-10-and-51-summary/#ixzz10eb9HKSt