This assignment is an extension of the second discussion. The essay must be two pages in length (one-inch margins/double spaced/Times New Roman, 12-point font). This means two full pages of text. There is no penalty if the essay is slightly over two pages, but there will be a penalty if the essay is close to three pages long, or if it is not close to two pages. Students are required to answer a question designed to assess comprehension of the material and other learning objectives.
Essay topic: Elite Democracy (Federalists Papers) vs. Popular Democracy (Anti-Federalists Papers)
Further instructions:
For the essay, you can write about any of the Federalist and Anti-Federalists papers. The minimum is two papers, one Federalist and one Anti-Federalist. A few of the writings are available from the textbook, but the list below may also be helpful. If you use the list, you only need to write about one topic, but you can use more than one if you find it helpful to do so. Please answer the following question: which side – the Federalists or the Anti-Federalists – had the stronger argument (and why). Remember to discuss two writings at a minimum (one from each side). For example, James Madison (Federalist No. 10) and Brutus (To the Citizens of the State of New York/New York Journal). Both are from the course textbook. A few examples of other possibilities are below.
| Topic | Federalist Paper | Anti-Federalist Paper |
| Checks and Balances | No. 10
No. 51 |
No. 47 (Centinel, “Balance” of Departments not Achieved under New Constitution”) |
| The Bill of Rights | No. 10
No. 84 |
No. 84 (Brutus, “On the Lack of a Bill of Rights”) |
| Executive Power | No. 67 | No. 67 (Cato, “Various Fears Concerning the Executive Department”) |
| The Judiciary | No. 78
No. 83 |
No. 78 and 79 (Brutus, “The Power of the Judiciary”) |
http://resources.utulsa.edu/law/classes/rice/Constitutional/AntiFederalist/antifed.htm
The Anti-Federalist examples above are meant to match the first link
http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/federalist-papers/
http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/antifederalist/
The examples from class are also here, and the writings are in chronological order. The Anti-Federalist arguments were not written as one set of writings like the Federalist arguments. As a result, different people group them in different ways.
Marking will be based on the following four criteria:
- Quality of argument: how well you articulate your argument, and how well you answer the essay question. Do you use and cite references properly? 20 points
- Clarity of argument: meaning good sentence structure, punctuation, and grammar. The easier it is to read and comprehend what you are writing, the higher your chances for a better mark. The writing center is available to help you with this/you may turn in a draft for feedback. 15 points
- Did you remember to include a title page, references and a bibliography of all cited sources? 10 points
- Was the essay submitted on time? 5 points
The maximum point total for the essay is 50 points. Also include a title page and a bibliography with the essay (remember they do not count towards the two pages). Any academic referencing style is acceptable, as long as you are consistent. I recommend Purdue OWL to anyone who has any referencing questions – https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/ – or when in doubt, go with my preferred referencing style (Chicago/Turabian); http://www.press.uchicago.edu/books/turabian/turabian_citationguide.html
