Preview

How Not To Read The Constitution In 1787

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
177 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
How Not To Read The Constitution In 1787
How Not to Read the Constitution is an articles that addresses the abstract qualities of the Constitution and how it should be interpreted as a living, changing document. In 1787, the Constitution was signed, included in this historic document were guaranteed basic rights, fundamental laws and the establishment of America’s national government. However, the Constitution was not America’s first governing document, the Articles of Confederation were. Under the Articles of Confederation America’s national government grew week. The states functioned individually like countries. In result of this, some national leaders decided that the Articles of the Confederation was a fail and it was time to try something new. In 1787, at a convention some delegates

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In the book “A Brilliant Solution: Inventing the American Constitution” by Carol Berkin she explains the constitution from start to finish from how it all began, to the debates inside the convention and finally the end product. Berkin takes the reader and puts him directly in the middle of the convention of 1786; throughout the book you can feel the excitement, the frustration, the tensions between delegates and the overall commitment to making a new government work for all.…

    • 1012 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The years 1776 to 1787 are often considered to be the most important and fateful when compared to all other epochs of American History: the now self-proclaimed Americans, having rebelled against royal authority, needed to develop a new system of government in order to survive. To accomplish such a feat, they needed a basis on which to establish this new authority. Established in autumn of 1777 and fully ratified in 1781, the Articles of Confederation was just this. These documents, at best a primitive constitution, were formed to be the basis of the federal government. While correctly serving as such, the Articles of Confederation subjected the United States to a series of problems in both domestic and foreign respects. Increasing in adversity with each aching year, these documents only brought about one good effect: they showed the Americans that a weak and disorganized government like the one during the Articles’ reign could never work.…

    • 2437 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the article, Framing the Constitution, Charles Beard had a very strong opinion on the Constitution and the motives of the framers. He believed that this document was written by the rich landowners, creditors, merchants, public bondholders, and lawyers, whose motives were to protect their wealth and property. Beard said that the reason the framers were against having majority rule was because they didn't want the majority to "overthrow" the rich framers of the time. This critical and different opinion of the Constitution and its framers is contrary to most modern belief. The framers had the "best minds" and mainly advocated the idea of "self-government". The idea of federalism in a republic was an innovative system.…

    • 426 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In 1781, the newly independent states in America developed the first written constitution in the United States, known as the Articles of Confederation. The Articles of Confederation served as the written law in the United States. The Articles of Confederation grouped the individual states with a weak central government to be sure the government of the United States would not be similar to that of Britain. This document took Americans through the American Revolution successfully, but…

    • 945 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The way that people read and perceive the Constitution can be completely different from the person reading the same document, sitting right next to them. Also, there are many examples of how the Constitution is…

    • 436 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    1. The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States.(Article II, section 2)…

    • 456 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    There is always a purpose for papers such as these, and the purpose here was to allay the fears of the people; the fear that this new Constitution wouldn’t work, the fear that there was no solution to the political instability the Articles of Confederation had, and the fear that the government would be too strong or controlling. The political instability at the time scared people because factions, (groups with common political interests that forced their opinions on others while disregarding…

    • 565 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The constitution is an outline of the rights, policies, and the separation of powers of the government. Following the separation of the 13 colonies from Britain with the writing of the Declaration Of Independence in 1776, the Articles of Confederation were composed to serve as the first United States Constitution to “secure the freedom, sovereignty, and independence of the United States.” After 11 years in 1787, the Articles of Confederation were voted to be revised as the document was weak for the national government. On the date of May 25th, 1787, Philadelphia opened the Constitutional Convention. Following the 1787 convention The U.S. Constitution was borne and with it came a three branch system; executive, legislative and judicial. The executive branch enforces the laws, the legislative branch makes the laws, and the judicial branch interprets the…

    • 670 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    It can be said that in a democracy, unity among the many cannot exist without compromise. Following the conclusion of the American Revolutionary War in 1776, the Articles of Confederation (the “Articles”) were written to allay fears about, and promote liberty, for its citizens, by legitimizing the rights of individual states. However, the Articles provided such restrictive powers for the underfunded national government to counteract deficiencies, that the union was at risk of collapse. A series of meetings, known as the Constitutional Convention (the “Convention”), was held to fix America’s dysfunctional political system, resulting in re-writing the American Constitution. Throughout the process of ratifying this historic document, many disputes…

    • 1152 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Articles of Confederation and United States Constitution are two documents that shaped the U.S. government into what it is today. The Articles of Confederation (AOC) was the first Constitution of the United States. Americans soon realized that this document had to be substantially modified because the U.S. needed a stronger government. The AOC was thought of as an ineffective national government document, although there were some strong points. The AOC was ratified in 1781, and replaced by an improved document known as the United States Constitution in 1789. An unknown person once said, “Perhaps the greatest service rendered by the Articles of Confederation was the impetus its shortcomings gave to those who favored a strong central government.” This is an analytical essay supporting this quote by comparing the strengths, weaknesses, and achievements of the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution.…

    • 1433 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    I still remember being in an eighth grade U.S. History class back in my junior high years. One distinct memory of that course, perhaps the most memorable of all the projects we had, came in the first month of the school year, in the curriculum’s first unit: the founding of the United States as its own nation. As the textbook timeline approached 1787 we prepared ourselves for a daunting task: memorize and recite the Preamble of the U.S. Constitution. We as students would wait anxiously as, one by one, each of our peers would step up to the front of the classroom and begin to recite from memory. Few people could recite the Preamble smoothly, but for those who stumbled, we all seemed to remember perfectly the first and last chunks: “We the People of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union…” and “…do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” To us back in eighth grade, that missing middle section was just a group of words to be more-or-less forgotten the next day. To our forefathers, however, that middle section was vital in creating the basis for the supreme law of the United States.…

    • 1245 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Constitutional Convention of 1787 was deemed a great success in many eyes. This constitution laid the foundation for the great nation called the United States of America. Looking back on America’s first plan of government, the Articles of Confederation, it is known that change was necessary in order to keep our nation moving forward and the Constitutional Convention was the first step to accomplishing success. The quarreling between the Federalists and Anti-Federalist over the ratification of the Constitution and demand for a better equipped government are all the more reasons why the Constitutional Convention was appropriate.…

    • 270 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Constitution of the United States was written in 1787, yet there was a struggle for its ratification that went on until 1790. Members of Congress believed that the Articles of Confederation, the first government of the United States, needed to be altered while others did not want change. After the Revolutionary War, there was a need for strong state centered governments, rather than a strong central government based on their experience as a colony. However, an investigation of the historical record reveals that the Articles of Confederation were not meeting the needs of Americans, and the need for a new Constitution was desired. This desired Constitution created a huge dispute and argument between the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists.…

    • 1033 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    During the period between its proposal in September 1787 and ratification in 1789, the United States Constitution was the subject of numerous debates. The contending groups consisted of Federalists, those who supported ratification, and Anti-Federalists, those opposed to the constitution. Each group published a series of letters known as the Federalist and Anti-Federalist Papers. The Anti-Federalist papers objected to provisions of the proposed constitution while the Federalist Papers defended the rationale behind the document. Anti-Federalist objections included that; the United States was too extensive to be governed by a republic, the constitution included no bill of rights, and the federal judiciary was vaguely defined and could become too powerful. Each of these arguments is worthy of attention as an examination of the debate between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists over the proposed Constitution.…

    • 1711 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    The United States Constitution is one of the most significant documents in modern world history. Its official date of adoption was on the seventeenth of September in 1897. The Constitution itself represents the advent of democracy, justice and freedom in a once-was colony which thereafter gained its independence. It established three branches of government; the legislative branch, the judicial branch and the executive branch. Additionally, the Constitution outlined the relationship between the country’s citizens and the Federal government.…

    • 589 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays