Preview

Compare And Contrast Tribe And Dorf

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
436 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Compare And Contrast Tribe And Dorf
In this essay, Tribe and Dorf describe our nation’s Constitution as a document that continues to dynamically work to achieve a balance between governmental power and individual liberty. Founding fathers like Madison and Jefferson also look to the constitution as a distinct outline, instead of a blueprint. The amendments and bills that comprise it tend to be very vague and open to interpretation of what some definitions actually mean. This leads to a lot of disputes throughout history of what the Constitution and its words stand for.
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

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
  • Better Essays

    Costello, G.A., Killian, J.H., & Thomas, K.R. (Ed.). (2002). The Constitution of the united states…

    • 1547 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the book The Conscious of the Constitution, the author Timothy Sandefur argues the merits of using the Declaration of independence as a legal document in the legal fight to keep the government out of the lives of the american citizen and thus control how the government expands. This book is a heavy read that while bias toward a small government is a must read when wanting to understand the debate that takes place between the right and the left. The book answers and raises questions about the constitution that make it an important pillar to base constitutional debate.…

    • 598 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Starting on May 25th of 1787 and lasting until September 17th of 1787 the creation and ratification of the United States Constitution is an integral part of American history. Moreover, the study of American history tends to neglect mentioning the “behind the scenes” that progressed the creation of America’s federated Constitutional Republic. “Plain, Honest Men: The Making of the American Constitution” by Richard Beeman is designed to demonstrate the diversity amongst Founding Fathers’ beliefs, intentions, and contributions to the Constitution and government. The narrative styled historical nonfiction follows the Constitutional Conventions of the late 1700’s including detailed debates surrounding slavery, representation, treasury, and ultimately…

    • 763 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    One does not need to be a genius, but if in a situation where several team up they can create something just as brilliant. The constitution’s brilliance of never ending relevance starts with its limitations of government but still being able to be amended, there are three methods in which the constitution sought to limit the area of power in the three organs of government, all through the bill of rights, system of checks and balances, and federalism. Are we not, one nation that takes pride in equality, not only with other nations but internally as well? As a collective, we consistently change; therefore the option to have a system to change with us is of paramount importance; in which our constitution fulfills this need.…

    • 647 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The debates over ratification of the Constitution represent the most important and intellectually sophisticated public debates in American history. On the one side, the supporters of the Constitution, or "Federalists," argued that the nation desperately needed a stronger national government to bring order, stability and unity to its efforts to find its way in an increasingly complicated world. Opponents of the Constitution, or "Antifederalists," countered that the the governments of the states were strong enough to realize the objectives of each state. Any government that diminished the power of the states, as the new Constitution surely promised to do, would also diminish the ability of each state to meet the needs of its citizens. More dramatically, the Antifederalists argued that the new national government, far removed from the people, would be all to quick to compromise their rights and liberties in the name of establishing order and unity.…

    • 1180 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    I recognize the importance of the constitution, which is the law that fundamentally governs the nation. It establishes the structure for the federal government, consisting of the three branches: the legislative, executive, and judicial sections of the government. Besides this, the Constitution establishes and protects individual freedom through the Bill of Rights and the subsequent amendments. This document also undergoes amendments to reflect a perfect union, establish justice, and ensure domestic tranquility. Nevertheless, my time as a slave, observing the violence and injustice of a system that gives me and my family our humanity no regard, taints my awareness of the Constitution.…

    • 1474 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    For decades, historians have debated the purpose of the United States Constitution. Some, such as Charles Beard claim that the constitution is an economic document meant to secure power in the hands of the wealthy. Others, most notably Henry Commager have challenged Beard’s analysis and claim that the Constitution was drafted with political motives instead. To make his point, Beard primarily discusses the writers of the constitution, and only assumes what the document itself will say. Commager makes a more convincing argument since he uses both the Constitution itself and the framers’ words as evidence.…

    • 584 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In Charles A. Beard’s article, “Framing the Constitution,” he suggested that there is a dichotomy between the values of the Constitution and those of the Declaration of Independence, who believed that the Constitution was a document that was only created to protect the framers’ wealth. He articulated that the reason rich framers wanted to protect against majority rule was to prevent the majority from overthrowing the rich. His purpose was to examine the circumstances and conflicting goals and ideals of the time, and how they were resolved and agreed upon in the Constitution. His analysis was very persuasive, as it effectively argued that importance of the circumstances at hand, as well as comprehensive, in that in articulates the issues and solutions of the time.…

    • 261 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Our founding father, Patrick Henry, said, “The Constitution is not an instrument for the government to restrain the people, it is an instrument for the people to restrain the government — lest it come to dominate our lives and interests.” Our founding fathers created a strong government for the people of the United States in order to protect their rights. They established a framework that our contemporary government is supposed to adhere to. Today, the American government has drifted away from the ideas embedded in our Constitution. The contemporary American government fails to work the way our founding fathers intended because of the representative government we have today.…

    • 779 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    On the heels of the revolutionary war and the failed attempt of a national government (The Articles of Confederation), the leaders of the United States set to make a stronger, centralized government, with dual sovereignty between the national government and the states. The rules of this governing body would be laid out in a document called the Constitution. Although most leaders supported the constitution they did not agree on many aspects of it. Out of the disagreement two groups emerged, the Federalist and the Anti-Federalist. The Federalist supported all aspects of the constitution and a larger national government, while the Anti-Federalist opposed ratifying the constitution and supported a smaller national government and more sovereignty to the states. This disagreement led to a fierce debate between the two groups that still resonates today. This essay will examine the primary…

    • 591 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In 1787 our founding fathers gathered in the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia, in the exact same room our Declaration of Independence had been signed a few years prior. This group of men was faced with the immense task of drafting the Constitution of the United States of America. Our founding fathers showed such brilliant foresight in how they structured this foundational document by recognizing the need for a Constitution designed to keep our government regulated. We will be exploring different facets within the structure of the Constitution, looking closely at some of those regulations such as Separation of Powers and Checks and Balances. Through this exploration we will come to understand the importance of these aspects, why they are so…

    • 1118 Words
    • 5 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

    Yeah

    • 1060 Words
    • 3 Pages

    * Until I return, Peter Sagal, host of NPR's "Wait, Wait ... Don't Tell Me," will be giving my first 4 lectures by you watching each of his following 4 PBS videos on line, each of which is 53 minutes long. Important points of each WILL BE on exam # 1. The four episodes include... (1) A More Perfect Union, (2) It's a Free Country, (3) Created Equal, (4) Built to Last, and they each can be viewed at http://video.pbs.org/program/constitution-usa-peter-sagal/ Peter Sagal breathes new life into the traditional civics lesson, by travelling across the country on a Harley Davidson to find out where the U.S. Constitution lives, how it works and how it doesn't ... how it unites us as a nation and how it has nearly torn us apart. Sagal introduces some major constitutional debates today and talks with…

    • 1060 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Voice of Democracy

    • 863 Words
    • 3 Pages

    An old, fragile woman sits on a park bench while she takes a short break from her afternoon stroll. It is warm and shady where she sits. Large trees and beautiful memorials surround her. Off in the distance, there are tall, admirable buildings, one of which is the Supreme Court Building. This is a building that the women knew very well, since she was the first woman ever in American history to be appointed as a Supreme Court Justice. As memories fill her head of legal cases, swinging votes, and debates, another thought comes to mind. She begins to wonder what this country would be like without all of its freedom, structure, and central government. She then relates her thoughts to the Supreme Court, where one vote out of seven can decide how the country is shaped, led, and run. The Supreme Court would have no meaning, no existence, and no value, without one document, the United States Constitution. The Constitution, although 225 years old, remains a powerful guiding force in our country, and it helped inform the many votes and decisions that filled the woman’s career.…

    • 863 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays