1. The social class that wrote the constitution were the people of the upper class which consisted of wealthy White men. In the reading it states, “the big landowners, merchants, and bankers exercised a strong influence over politico-economic life.” Around this time, the only people who owned large plots of land and were wealthy were specifically White males. The lower class such as persons of African descent, White males who don’t own enough property, and indentured servants were not allowed to participate in the constitutional process. In the reading it states, ” Only property-owning White males could vote, which was not more than 10% of the total population.” This represented a unfair system within the government since the majority population (the lower class) had no voice when it came to the constitutional process of our country.
2. I would say the social class structure of the United States society was different back then compared to now because now we allow more than just wealthy people to have a say in our government. Women, african-americans, and lower class people can vote nowadays. Back then the upper class was scared to give the lower class this power because they felt as if the lower class wasn’t capable of being involved with our government. Also social norms have changed and woman have equal rights to men, as before they weren’t subject have those same basic rights that we have today.
3. The people who wrote the constitution were afraid of democracy because the upper class felt as if the people of the lower class could be a threat to the government if they were given too much power. An example of this is, “In 1787, George Washington wrote to a former comrade-in-law that a constitution was needed in order to contain the threat of people.” George Washington was expressing how if there was no way of controlling the lower class, then they would rebel against the nation.

1. The wealthy class wrote the constitution, and they excluded the working-class people. The wealthy class people are capitalists in power who are born into money and own businesses. The working-class people are the people who work for these capitalists and don’t own property. The wealthy people felt like the working-class people shouldn’t participate in the making of the constitution because the wealth people expressed that the working class had distinct interest than the wealthy people and they wanted to protect their own interest. In reading 6.1, “class power in early America” by Michael Parenti, it states “Most historians say little about the plight of common folks in early America. Most of the white population consisted of poor freeholders, artisans, tenants, and indentured servants. 

2. It is different because back in early United States society, you stay in your social class. Now in days people have the opportunity to improve their socioeconomic status because we have resources like schools and more jobs. 

3. The people who wrote the constitution were afraid of democracy because they believed it would lead to the majority, which were the common people eventually having more power than the minority, which are the wealthy people. This would lead to the common people making policies that would better their situation, which would put the wealthy people at a disadvantage. As discussed before, what is good for the working-class people is bad for the wealthy class people and vice versa. 

1. Based on the arguments presented in Readings 6.1 and 6.2, which social class wrote the Constitution, and which class was excluded and not allowed to participate in this process?

Based on the readings 6.1 and 6.2 the social class that wrote the Constitution was the early capitalist elite, which included white male, land owners, merchants, bankers and creditors. The working class and the disenfranchised, which included poor farmers, servants, wage laborers, enslaved Africans, Native Americans, and all women were all excluded and not allowed to participate on the writing of the Constitution.

2. Would say that the social class structure of early United States society, was the same as ours today, or different? Explain.

If I was asked this question before the readings for this week, I would immediately answer that it’s all different. But after the readings, and reflecting on our current social class structure, I would say that there are many similarities, even more than I would want to think about. It is true that now voting is allowed to the worker class, women and all, but we still have the rich and wealthy controlling the mass and dictating how politics should happen. We still have a very low number of wealthy, while the majority of society is either working class or in poverty.

3. Why were the people who wrote the Constitution so afraid of democracy? Hint: think about how to answer this question by discussing it in terms of social classes.

People were and are afraid of democracy because in reality, the vast majority of people are in the working class, so they feared that they would turn agains the wealthy and the people in power. That is also the reason why there are electoral colleges. They wanted to create an ideology that people would follow, while still protecting their status and social class. Anything that threatens that is automatically silenced or removed.

The Constitution was authored by the rich elite—largely property owners, traders, and lawyers—who were the upper echelon of early America. The working class, slaves, women, and Indians were left out altogether. The fathers desired a government that took care to preserve property and order, so the power of the masses had to be checked. As one can see, voting rights were limited to property-owning males. This demonstrates that early America wasn’t actually democratic—it was set up to the advantage of those already holding power.

To compare that to now, I believe the class structure remains the same in most ways. Although we have additional rights and possibilities nowadays, power as well as political power still remains with a select section of society. The founders were scared of democracy because they felt the poor the majority of the people could vote to redistribute funds or oppose the power of the elite. That paranoia still resonates within the power dynamic within America to this day.

1. Based on the readings from Parenti and Beard, the Constitution was mainly written by the wealthy, property-owning class, landowners, merchants, and creditors who wanted to protect their economic interests. These were men who already had power and money, and they didn’t want to lose it. The excluded class included poor farmers, workers, slaves, women, and anyone without property, who had no voice in government and couldn’t vote. Beard points out that these groups were completely left out of the Constitutional Convention, while Parenti explains that the framers feared letting “the people” have too much power because they thought the poor majority might threaten property rights. Basically, the Constitution reflected the interests of the few, not the many.
   

2. I’d say it’s similar in some ways but different in others. Back then, social class was based mostly on land and property ownership, while today it’s more about income, wealth, and education. But even now, a small group of people still hold most of the money and power. Parenti’s argument about the farmers wanting to keep power out of the hands of ordinary people reminds me of how big corporations and the wealthy still have more political influence today. So, while the system has changed on the surface, more people can vote and have rights, the basic inequality between rich and poor hasn’t really gone away.

3. The framers were afraid of democracy because they thought it could threaten their wealth and property. They worried that if too many people, especially poor farmers and laborers, got political power, they might vote to cancel debts, redistribute land, or raise taxes on the rich. Parenti says they feared what he calls the “leveling impulses” of the propertyless majority. Beard’s reading supports this by showing that most framers had personal financial interests they wanted to protect. So, instead of a true democracy, they created a republic, where power stayed mostly in the hands of the educated and wealthy few. They claimed it was to prevent “mob rule,” but really, it was to protect their class interests.

1. According to both Beard and Parenti, the Constitution was written by wealthy elites. Men who owned property, land, slaves, and businesses. Beard’s analysis shows that most framers had strong economic interests in bonds, land speculation, and commerce, and therefore wanted a government that would protect property and investments. Parenti adds that these elites were motivated to maintain their dominance after the Revolution by creating a system that looked democratic but served their class interests. The excluded classes were poor farmers, laborers, indentured servants, enslaved Africans, and women. They had no political voice and were often suppressed when they protested. These groups were seen as a threat to property and “order,” so they were intentionally left out of political decision-making.
2. While society has changed in appearance, Parenti would argue that the class structure remains fundamentally similar. Then, as now, a small wealthy class controls most economic and political power. In the 1780s it was the landowners and merchants; today, it’s corporate leaders, billionaires, and major investors. Beard’s analysis suggests that just as the framers shaped laws to serve their economic class, modern political and economic elites continue to influence the government through lobbying, campaign financing, and corporate interests. The faces have changed, but the class power dynamic remains.
3. Beard and Parenti both show that the framers feared democracy because it meant giving power to the majority class; the poor and working people. They were worried that a truly democratic system would threaten their wealth and privilege through things like debt relief, fairer taxes, or land redistribution. To prevent this, they designed a government with strong limits on popular participation such as the Electoral College, an appointed Senate, and property qualifications for voting. In Parenti’s words, the Constitution was meant to “contain democracy, not unleash it.” Their fear of democracy was ultimately a fear of losing class control.
   
   

1. Based on the arguments presented in both Readings 6.1 and 6.2 the social class that wrote the constitution the wealthier or higher social class wrote the Constitution and the lower class was excluded and not allowed to participate in the process. For example, in “ Democracy for the Few” by Michael Parenti it states “In twelve of the thirteen states (Pennsylvania excepted), only property-owning White males could vote, probably not more than 10 percent of the total adult population. Excluded were all Native Americans (“Indians”), per-sons of African descent, women, indentured servants, and White males lacking sufficient property. Property qualifications for holding office were so steep as to exclude even most of the White males who could vote.” This quote from the reading shows me that the only people who were allowed to vote were white males who owned properties while other white males who didn’t weren’t allowed as well as lower classes and people of color. The second reading also supports this claim when it states “the slaves, the indented servants, the mass of men who could not qualify for voting under the property tests imposed by the state constitutions and laws, and women, disenfranchised and subjected to the discriminations of the common law. These groups were, therefore, not represented in the Convention which drafted the Constitution, except under the theory that representation has no relation to voting.” This supports my claim that the social class excluded from the constitution was the lower class and people of color.
2. If we sit and compare the social class structure from the early United States society to the one we live in now I would say there are several big differences like not having to own property to be able to vote or not having to be a certain race. However, many things make it just like early United States society with certain groups having more power or say over others and the wealthier class having more rights or privileges/ representation over the lower class minority groups.
3. The framers were afraid of Democracy because they thought the lower classes would vote for laws to hurt the wealthy: tax them more, get rid of a lot of the benefits they have, or simply threaten property rights. The framers wanted to protect the rich since they saw them as more trustworthy for having money and saw the lower classes as unreliable and always in debt.

In the early days of the United States, only white men who owned property could vote. This left out most of the people, including women, enslaved people, free Black people, and poor whites.  The Constitution was written by rich people, landowners, merchants, slaveholders, and creditors, who stood to gain the most from a strong national government that protected their property and money. The majority of people were either part of the working class or were disenfranchised, showing they did not possess the necessary wealth and land to engage in the political process. James Madison wrote “Federalist #10” to protect the interests of the wealthy elite by stopping the rise of factions, especially those made up of poor people who might want to redistribute wealth. He wanted a big republic with a representative system that would lessen the power of the people and protect property rights. The people who wrote the Constitution were afraid of democracy because they thought it could make things unstable and hurt their economic power. They made institutions like the Electoral College and the Supreme Court, which are not elected, to filter and control the will of the majority. The Constitution did not end the slave trade because many of its writers owned slaves or were financially dependent on slavery so they used to depends on them. They put the states’ unity and their own wealth ahead of moral concerns.

1. The Constitution was mainly written by wealthy, educated, property-owning men mostly from the upper class of merchants, landowners, and elites. This group had political influence and wanted to protect their property and economic interests. The excluded class included small farmers, laborers, women, enslaved people, and those without property. For example, voting rights were limited to white male property owners, which left out the majority of the population from having a say in shaping the government. The framers believed that too much power in the hands of the poor and uneducated could threaten stability.

2. The social class structure of early U.S. society was very different from ours today, although some inequalities remain. In the late 1700s, class and political rights were directly tied to property ownership, race, and gender. Today, legal barriers like property requirements have been removed, and most adults can vote regardless of wealth or gender. However, we still see economic inequality shaping politics, since wealthier groups often have more influence through campaign funding, lobbying, and access to resources. So while the system is more democratic now, echoes of the old class divide still remain.

3. The framers of the Constitution were afraid of democracy because they associated it with “mob rule” and the possibility that poorer majorities would vote to take wealth or property from the elite. They wanted a government that protected private property and maintained order, which is why they designed checks and balances, the Electoral College, and limits on direct participation. In short, their fear came from class interests: they worried that too much democracy would undermine the power and privileges of the wealthy ruling class.