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Midterm Examination and Reaction Paper. (Take-Home)
This examination has three parts
The Exam is due on Tuesday, April 9
Below you'll find twelve representative quotations taken from the readings
in The Idea of Democracy.
Part 1. Identify the author of each quotation. (20% of
midterm exam grade)
Part 2. In each case, the quotation reflects upon an issue of
concern to the author. For this part, Select three quotes of your
choice, and (1) using your own words, identify what
the issue under consideration is, and the author's position on that issue.
(2) Then state your own agreement or disagreement with the position
including reasons. The best answers will consider examples applying the
position to today's concerns. Keep these short, between 1-2 pages each
should be plenty, and focus primarily on the quote itself, rather than
the larger writing from which it was extracted. Each answer constitutes
20% of your midterm examination grade.
Part 3. Write a considered reaction paper (3-5 pp. Typed) based
on your readings and the film Mr Smith Goes to Washington.
The question I want to to consider is this.
Does this film show America's Democratic Ideas owe a debt to
the ideas of classical
Greece and Renaissance Europe? If so, how?
If you need to review the film it can there are two copies in the Roger
Williams University Library. You can locate substantial excerpts
from the film's dialogue at http://www.filmsite.org/mrsm.html
Note that the information continues over a number of pages. Use the
arrows at the bottom to browse forward and backwards.
Grading on the reaction papers will follow roughly these guidelines:
1. C level papers will make an attempt at each part of the requirement,
though some elements may be casually done or missing. The writer will not
always have lived up to college level writing expectations as outlined
in the Common Standards handout (there will be errors in grammar
and spelling, and primary and secondary support will not always be present
at satisfactory levels. There will be a general feeling that the authors
are "going through the motions" without much real intellectual involvement.
2. B level papers will show a greater consistency in the application
of Common Standards for Written Assignments. Their authors will
attempt to assert a greater degree of control over their arguments, making
their cases in a persuasive manner. While there may still be errors in
fact or judgment, the papers will demonstrate that the authors gave considerable
effort to going beyond the minimum requirements of the assignment itself.
3 A level papers go beyond the minimum requirements for the paper
to include additional research on the part of the authors. In this course,
this can be achieved by following up one or more of the hypertext links
associated with the authors of the readings, (finding, for example, biographical
information or scholarly writings about them) and incorporating the findings
into the paper. A level papers also show signs of care in revision, making
few grammatical or spelling errors and generally demonstrating a level
of polish and assurance beyond that of B level papers. |
The Quotations
| Quotation A |
Because of laziness and cowardice, many supposedly grown men remain
happily immature throughout their lives, readily allowing others to serve
as their guardians. After all, it so easy to remain immature. If I have
a book which does my thinking for me, a priest or pastor who serves as
my conscience, and a doctor who tells me what to eat, then I need not take
the trouble to think for my self. |
| Quotation B |
Whatsoever therefore is consequent to a time of war, where every man
is enemy to every man, the same is consequent to the time, wherein men
live without other security, than what their own strength, and their own
invention shall furnish them withal. In such condition, there is
no place for industry; because the fruit thereof is uncertain: and
consequently no culture of the earth; no navigation, nor use of the commodities
that may be imported by sea; no commodious building; no instruments of
moving and removing, such things as require much force; no knowledge of
the face of the earth; no account of time; no arts; no letters; no society;
and what is worst of all, continual fear, and danger of violent death;
and the life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short. |
| Quotation C |
I entreat you to consider that, when you choose magistrates, you take
them from among yourselves, men subject to like passions as you are. Therefore,
when you see infirmities in us, you should reflect upon your own, and that
would make you bear the more with us, and not be severe censurers of the
failings of your magistrates, when you have continual experience of the
like infirmities in yourselves and others. We account him a good servant
who breaks not his covenant. The covenant between you and us is the oath
you have taken of us, which is to this purpose, that we shall govern you
and judge your causes by the rules of God's laws and our own, according
to our best skill. |
| Quotation D |
Where all the citizens rule they take pride in their young people.
But where a tyrant rules, he fears them, and, seeing the most talented
among them as a threat to his power, he puts them to the sword. How
can the city survive and prosper, where its ruler stifles all initiative
and uses his sword like a scythe, cutting down its youths like the flowers
of spring? |
| Quotation E |
Now the only way to avoid this shipwreck and to provide for our posterity
is to follow the counsel of Micah, to do justly, to love mercy, to walk
humbly with our God. For this end we must be knit together in this work
as one man, we must entertain each other in brotherly affection, we must
be willing to abridge ourselves of our superfluities for the supply of
others' necessities, we must uphold a familiar commerce together in all
meekness, gentleness, patience, and liberality, we must delight in each
other, make others' conditions our own, rejoice together, mourn together,
labor and suffer together, always having before our eyes our commission
and community in the work, our community as members of the same body So
shall we keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. |
| Quotation F |
And so, however we may define man, a single definition will apply to
all. This is a sufficient proof that there is no difference in kind
between man and man, ...and indeed reason, which alone raises us above
the level of the beasts and enables us to draw inferences, to prove and
disprove, to discuss and solve problems, and to come to conclusions, is
certainly common to us all, and, though varying in what it learns, at least
in the capacity to learn it is invariable. |
| Quotation G |
Whensoever therefore the legislative shall transgress this fundamental
rule of society; and either by ambition, fear, folly, or corruption, endeavour
to grasp themselves, or put into the hands of any other, an absolute power
over the lives, liberties, and estates of the people; by this breach of
trust they forfeit the power the people had put into their hands for quite
contrary ends, and it devolves to the people, who have a right to
resume their original liberty.... |
| Quotation H |
Thus it is manifest that the best political community is formed by
citizens of the middle class, and that those states are likely to be well-administered,
in which the middle class is large, and stronger if possible than both
the other classes, or at any rate than either singly; for the addition
of the middle class turns the scale, and prevents either of the extremes
from being dominant. |
| Quotation I |
We alone regard a man who takes no interest in public affairs, not
as harmless, but as a useless character; and if few of us are originators,
we are all sound judges of a policy. The great impediment to action is,
in our opinion, not discussion, but the want of that knowledge which is
gained by discussion preparatory to action. |
| Quotation K |
Nevertheless there is a part, and a very important part left for the
people too. For it is the people which alone has the right to confer
honors and inflict punishment, the only bonds by which kingdoms and states
are held together....Again it is the people who bestow office on the deserving,
the noblest reward of virtue in a state;...Thus here again one might plausibly
say that the people's share in the government is the greatest, and that
the constitution is a democratic one. |
| Quotation L |
Wherever there is much desire to learn, there of necessity will be
much arguing, much writing, many opinions; for opinion in good men is knowledge
in the making. Under these fantastic terrors of sect and schism,
we wrong the earnest and zealous thirst for knowledge and understanding
which God has stirred up in this city. What some lament of, we should
rather rejoice at, should rather praise this pious forwardness among men,
to reassume the ill-reputed care of their Religion into their own hands
again. A little generous prudence, a little forbearance of one another,
and some grain of charity might win all these diligences to join, and unite
in one general and brotherly search after Truth;... |
| Quotation M |
Nobody therefore, in fine, neither single persons, nor churches, nay,
nor even commonwealths, have any just title to invade the civil rights
and worldly goods of each other, upon pretense of religion. Those
that are of another opinion would do well to consider with themselves how
pernicious a seed of discord and war, how powerful a provocation to endless
hatreds, rapines, and slaughters, they thereby furnish unto mankind.
No peace and security, no, not so much as common friendship, can ever be
established or preserved amongst men, so long as this opinion prevails,
"that dominion is founded upon grace, and that religion is to be propagated
by force of arms." |
These are from documents 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, and 16
I'm happy to help you with this assignment any way that I can.
The easiest way to contact me is by e-mail, at either school: mswanson@rwu.edu,
or at home: mrhs@tiac.net |