An essay by James Madison in The Federalist (1787-1788) that challenged the view that republican governments worked only in small polities and argued that a large state would better protect republican liberty.
“Federalist No. 10”
“Federalist No. 10” is one of the most famous essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay collectively known as the Federalist Papers. This essay was published on November 22, 1787, and is considered a seminal work of political philosophy in the early United States.
In “Federalist No. 10,” James Madison discusses the issue of factionalism or political parties. He argues that political factions are a natural and inescapable consequence of human nature and that the only way to control their negative effects is through a republican form of government.
Madison believed that factions arise from different groups of people who pursue their interests and opinions that often clash with one another. But factions also create a danger to free government because they can easily become tyrannical and work against the public good. Madison’s solution was to create a large, diverse, and representative republic that would control factions through the use of institutional checks and balances.
Madison’s theory of a strong federal government and the separation of powers was key to the development of the US Constitution. The essay was written to convince people at the time of the adoption of the Constitution to support the document, and it is still relevant today to those interested in understanding American politics.
In summary, “Federalist No. 10” argues that political factions are a natural part of human nature, that they are dangerous to the public good, and that they can be controlled through a well-structured republic that has a series of checks and balances that prevent any single group from gaining too much power.
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