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? In your comment, make sure you clearly specify the difference between the two classes by giving examples from the readings. The constitution was written by the minority ruling class of all white wealthy owning class white men. Landowners, merchants and banker types or the haves as they were referred to were the only ones that could afford to take the time to gather privately for months to brainstorm and come up with the constitution unfortunately the have nots, working class did not have a seat at the table. This exclusion was also based on race and gender, as people of color and women had no voice in the process.
  2. Would say that the social class structure of early United States society, was the same as ours today, or different? Explain. I would say that the social class structure of early United States society and that of today’s are identical. The minority wealthiest remain the ruling class, as the working class brunt the responsibilities of the taxes and can’t seem to rise out of poverty. Present-day wealth inequality, such as the concentration of wealth in the hands of a small group of individuals or corporations, mirrors the unequal distribution of wealth in the 18th century. Additionally, the lack of social mobility today reflects the same challenges faced by the working class in the 18th century. The only difference is 7 thousand dollars of wealth back then is equal to 1 million dollars today.
  3. Why were the people who wrote the Constitution so afraid of democracy? The founding fathers were afraid of democracy because it threatened their wealth and control over political power. This is why they kept the wealthy class in control of the affairs of the nation so to keep in check the “leveling impulses” of the “property-less” majority working class. As written in Federalist No. 10 “the first object of government is the protection of different and unequal faculties of acquiring property. This fear of “democratic excess” led to the creation of structures like the Electoral College and the Senate, which were designed to limit direct popular influence.

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