- Which class wrote the Constitution, and which was excluded?
According to the passages, the Constitution was written by the wealthy class. Parenti calls them wealthy gentlemen. The ones who owned lands, banks, factories, slaves and more. These men (such as Robert Morris, Hamilton and Washington) mostly had each other’s interests in mind, more than that of the poor and propertyless majority.
The ones who were excluded from taking part in the constitution were: slaves, indentured servants, men who did not own enough property, Native Americans, poor farmers, tenants, artisans and women.
The framers were creditors, they owned land, slaves, factories whereas the excluded ones were the debtors who had rents, taxes, and heavy interests to pay. The debtor class pushed for measures that would help like debtor-relief laws, whereas the wealthy class wanted a government that would block them.
2. Is the class structure of early America the same as today’s, or different?
In my opinion there are differences and similarities between the two.
Early America had legal class barriers, such as slavery and voting only being permitted for white men who owned enough property. Those have been abolished today. Voting is permitted for all adult citizens, no more slavery and the economy has grown enough to allow all types of ways to earn.
However, most of the nation’s wealth is still mainly owned by a small percantage of people. The wealthy still use their wealth to influence the government and economy whilst the lower income class still have not much say. Thus, although there are no more exclusions, legally, the power and advantages still remain for the wealthy and not the working class who are still debtors (loans, rents, debt etc).
3. Why were the framers so afraid of democracy?
Democracy meant the majority rules. In the 1700s, the majority were the poor. The framers feared democracy would lead to debt relief, paper money and stay laws which all hurt creditors, as mentioned by Beard. Madison, in Federalist No. 10, warned that “a rage for paper money, for an abolition of debts, for an equal division of property” could spread among the people, and Elbridge Gerry went as far as calling democracy “the worst of all political evils.
They also detested the working class (they didn’t think they could be trusted with public interest) and feared rebellion. As a result, the framers built a system to limit majority power. Senators and the president were chosen indirectly, by state legislatures and the Electoral College rather than directly by the voters, and Supreme Court justices were appointed to life terms and elected by no one.
