The American Government - A Philosophical View

Total words: 1286

Many factors have contributed to our American form of government. These factors include influences made by ancient forms of government as well as the contributions of many noted philosophers. The role of some philosophers is the central focus of this paper. Philosophers whose contributions will be further expound on include (but are not limited to) Plato, Aristotle, Niccolo Machiavelli, Adam Smith, Karl Marx and others whose ideas and contributions are included throughout the remainder of this paper.

One of the philosophers whose ideas influenced our early form of government was Plato. Plato's philosophy centered on "the ‘ideal state', which according to Plato, is composed of three classes". This idea, in my opinion, influences the way we vote for our highest official, the president. The individual, in our form of government, upon placing a vote for his ‘candidate' is in reality placing a vote for a representative (or elector) to the Electoral College, who then actually selects the president. This practice, therefore, removes the real power of electing the president from the masses in general and places it on the electoral college, who can (and sometimes do) vote different than the instruction given by the voters.

Another philosopher whose ideas also influenced our form of government was Aristotle. His idea that voting rights should be limited was a main contributor to the early practice in America where only white males had a vote. Women and minorities such as blacks were not given the right to vote until amendments to the constitution were enacted. Early politicians held the same belief expounded by Aristotle until the masses and in particular, the women's movement brought about a change to the constitution with the fifteenth and nineteenth amendment passages. Slavery, which was at one time approved and sanctioned by our early form of government, can also be traced back to the ideas of Aristotle on this subject. The abolition of slavery for the most part ended the influence of Aristotle's ideas upon our practice of government but it did not end his influence on individuals who continued to believe in slavery and a ‘god given' right that white males are "superior" and therefore deserve to dictate to those deemed to be inferior.

Niccolo Machiavelli was an Italian philosopher who has also influenced the practice of our form of government. His idea that "to accomplish his ends, the prince or ruler had the right to use any means necessary, even force, deceit, or breach of the moral law." (Frost, 193) is an idea which influenced, in my opinion, our government's treatment of the Japanese during World War II. Japanese lost not only lost their material possessions, but also their rights as citizens, when they were put into relocation camps. The government view that it can set aside the constitution, if deemed necessary is one that can also be found today in regards to the governments' response to the terrorist attacks of September 11th. However, the resistance to this view is now more voiced that it was during World War II.

Another noted philosopher, Thomas Hobbes, believed in the authoritarian power of the "king" whose power was unquestionable in his theory of the "divine right of kings" (Frost, 196). This influenced our form of government by limiting the right of the "king" or ruler, by the formation of the three branches of government. This also indirectly influenced the formation of a shared government between the central (or federal) government and the local state governments. Hobbes is also credited as being "one of the first modern Western thinkers to provide a secular justification for the political state" and whose philosophy "marked a departure in English philosophy from the religious emphasis of Scholasticism" (Encarta, 2004). This, in my opinion, directly influences our separation between the church and state.

Another philosopher, John Locke, held views directly opposed to those of Thomas Hobbes. Locke's philosophy "defended the proposition that government rests on popular consent and rebellion is permissible when government subverts the ends (the protection of life, liberty, and property) for which it is established" (www.blupete.com). His philosophy helped in the formation of the three branches of government and also in the right of the people to government when it infringed on the rights of the individual. The individual has, and reserves the right to change the government through its vote, and through its right to protest openly. John Locke also is credited with the formation of laissez faire (or a free economy) practiced in America.

Adam Smith was another philosopher who further expounded on the views of his predecessor, John Locke. He also believed in a ‘hands off government' who should infer with the individual as little as possible unless it was absolutely necessary.

Karl Marx, the founder of the philosophy of communism, has had influence on our government that has as its basis a direct opposition of his views and ideas. His idea of revolt and revolution has helped establish a stable American government which transitions smoothly between political party rules. When one political party loses an election, the winning political party comes into power in a smooth and orderly manner.

Claude Henri de Rouvroy, Comte de Saint-Simon, another philosopher, is credited as being the founder of socialism. His believed that "the men, who are fitted to organize society for productive labour, are entitled to bear rule in it" and that "the social aim is to produce things useful to life." His influence can be seen in our belief in democracy and the belief that government is by, and for the people which is a basic tenement of our government.

Herbert Spencer, credited with the phrase "survival of the fittest" (Encarta, 2004) is another noted philosopher who ideas inversely influenced our form of government. The belief that the powerful did not need to take care of the weak is one that is in direct opposition to our government practice of looking out for the general welfare of those who are not able to protect themselves. This includes the young, elderly, and oppressed who are "cared for" by our government programs such as welfare, social security and medicare as well as with numerous laws meant to protect them. One such law is the "Disability Act" but many other such laws have been enacted to secure the welfare of individuals who are may be deemed "weak".

One more philospher, Friedrich Nietzsche, also influenced American government. Although he is credited with Nazism, his views were far from it, but made to seem to be it by his sister's editing of his work. Although he believed that the strong should rule, he also believed that no one race was superior to another and that "that the 'vigor' of any population could only be increased by mixing with others" (Wikipedia.org). He had no use for democracy and believed in strong leadership.

According to Wikipedia.org, "it could be argued that he would have agreed with the Nazis' sterilisation of the disabled." The influence on our American government is in direct opposition to his views. Although our government does not have the right to sterilize the weak, in the early twentieth century, many mentally ill women were sterilized, and even today, some are still subjected to sterilization although not to the large scale of numbers which had been in the past.

In conclusion, there are many philosophers who have either directly or inversely influenced our American government. Some of this influence has had positive effects while others have had negative effects on our government, in my opinion. Our government, although it still has some flaws, it is also one of the most prominent and successful in the world. This, in my opinion, is due to the fact that it is constantly in a state of evolution (although unchaotic).

Add a Review for this free essay

Be the first one to review this free Essay

Sticky Note Text....

Welcome! Not a Member? Click here to Join Now!
Log in
Forgot Password?