Quiz Questions for Presentation 3 Formation of the American Idea

Quiz questions for presentation 3 – Formation of the American Idea

Multiple choice

1. Rights derived from a higher power are called

a. natural

b. social

c. Hobbesian

d. constitutional

Answer A – The lecture discusses Locke’s theory of Natural Rights

2. What right was established in the Magna Carta?

a. Self Representation

b. Habeas Corpus

c. Suffrage

d. Ex Post Facto

Answer B – The document said that the King was not allowed to imprison nobility in jail without cause.

3. Why did Americans enjoy more rights that their British Counterparts?

a. They had more elections

b. They had greater suffrage

c. They enjoyed greater equality between classes

d. all of the above

Answer D – Because land was cheap and labor was scarce, commoners were treated much better in America than in England during the colonial period.

4. Why did Americans use written constitutions when setting up state and local governments?

a. They were following the British tradition of written constitutions.

b. They had to negotiate each point of governance with the indigenous peoples.

c. They were ordered to by the King as part of their territorial charters.

d. They could not rely on centuries of common law understandings in a new land.

Answer D – With immigrants from all parts of England, as well as other parts of Europe, the settlers could not rely on tradition and wanted to set forth a clear statement of the rules for their new societies.

5. Why is civic virtue necessary for a free republic?

a. Because only a homogeneous society can have order and safety.

b. Because people who will not restrain their own behavior must be restrained by government.

c. Because the social contract is only possible when natural law is followed.

d. None of the above, the state should not legislate morality.

Answer B – Societies that lack virtue are marked by a multitude of laws restricting behavior and a police force capable of forcing obedience to those laws.

Essay Question

In regards to the Constitution, compare and contrast the ideals of original intent with the concept of the constitution as a living document.

Discussion Questions

-- The founders argued that the citizenry of a Republic had to practice civic virtue to maintain its freedom. How are we doing? Is there enough civic virtue in our society to uphold our freedom? Are there things we can do to enhance or uphold public virtue?

-- The US founding took place in a unique colonial setting that drew on the British heritage of a limited state. Is the US system nevertheless universal in its application? Or is US-style democracy something that does not transfer well to other societies with different histories?

Links

Text of the Magna Carta

http://www.thisnation.com/library/magnacarta.html

Text of the Mayflower Compact

http://www.thisnation.com/library/mayflower.html