GOV 1080 Study Guide - Spring 2018, Comprehensive Midterm Notes - Woodrow Wilson, Virginia, United States Senate
72 views13 pages
GOV 1080
MIDTERM EXAM
STUDY GUIDE
Fall 2018
Gov 1080: American Political Thought Lecture Notes
Lecture 1: 1/23/17:
Illuminate the distinction between constitutional democracy and popular democracy
Democracies were seen as negative early on
Democracies are about mediocrity
So many complaints about government
oElected officials are not like the people who vote for them
The founders were worried about the kind of leaders he people would be attracted to
Thought that people would be led to electing demagogues
Who is good at figuring out what people want?
oTeachers have to be demagogues
Have to have some sense of what is enjoyable and interesting
oBusiness/marketing
oLawyers are the best at this
A trial lawyer is a real lawyer
Get into court rooms and make arguments
The jury is the demos
oEntertainers provide what the people want as well
Appealing to a mass market
Jay Leno is a good example
Demagoguism can become quite divisive
oSoft/hard demagoguery
Demagoguism can disempower the people for the sake of elevating the demagogue
The way to neutralize demagoguery is to not have a popular democracy
oNeed to have constitutional democracy
Constitutions formalize politics
oSo as to bring out the best in the people
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Formal politics make people conscious of itself
oSimilar to how formal clothes make people more self-conscious
Lecture 2: 1/25/17:
The liberal community and moral community
The one thing worth remembering: difference between constitutional and popular democracy
Still staying at the big picture level
Who are we?
oWe are: anyone who wants to understand American politics
READING by Hartz is the most relevant reading to today
oThe Liberal Tradition in America
oAll Americans are liberal according to him
oArgument: what defines us is our agreement with the liberal idea
o“We hold these truths to be self-evident”
oThe holding part of that is significant
o
We are what we believe
oWhat holds us together is what we believe, not what we love or the language we speak
and such
Liberalism is a partisan creed
But he’s referring to Philosophic Liberalism
o17th and 18th centuries is where this took hold
We are all Lockean Liberals according to Hartz
oWhat is fascinating is that Americans did not think their way into Locke
oThey were Lockean before they were alive!
oWe are DOGMATIC, THOUGHTLESS, INTOLERANT Lockeans
When you are something, you have it in a dogmatic quality
Lockean Liberals
oNatural, Free, and Equal
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com