I'm struggling to answer these questions. I don't know their answers.
"Society is indeed a contract. Subordinate contracts for objects of mere occasional interest may be dissolved at pleasure--but the state ought not to be considered as nothing better than a partnership agreement in a trade of pepper and coffee...taken up for a little temporary interest, and to be dissolved by the fancy of the parties....As the ends of such a partnership cannot be obtained in many generations, it becomes a partnership not only between those who are living, but between those who are to be born. Each contract of each particular state is but a clause in the great primaeval contract of eternal society, linking the lower with the higher natures, connecting the visible and the invisible world, according to a fixed compact...." --Edmund Burke, Reflections on the French Revolution (1789)
"Every age and generation must be as free to act itself in all cases as the age and generation which preceded it. The vanity and presumptions of governing beyond the grave is the most ridiculous and insolent of all tyrannies. Man has no property in man; neither has any generation a property in the generations which are to follow. Every generation is, and must be, competent to all the purposes which its occasions require. It is the living, and not the dead, that are to be accommodated." --Thomas Paine, The Rights of Man (1792)
1. Based on these excerpts, how would Burke identify the people who make a social contract for a government? How would Paine do so?
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2. With which of these arguments do you think most Americans would agree? Why do you think so?
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1. Burke identified people who made a social contract for a government as people permanent and likely to last for generations.
Paine thought it was wrong to consider any government action affecting people after this generation.
2. What do YOU think?
To answer these questions, we need to examine the excerpts from Edmund Burke's "Reflections on the French Revolution" and Thomas Paine's "The Rights of Man."
1. Based on these excerpts, how would Burke identify the people who make a social contract for a government? How would Paine do so?
In the first excerpt from Burke, he describes society as a long-lasting partnership that extends beyond the immediate interests and lifetimes of individuals. He emphasizes that the social contract is not a temporary agreement formed for short-term gain. Instead, Burke views it as an enduring agreement between the living and future generations. According to Burke, the people who make this social contract are not just the individuals currently living, but also those who are yet to be born.
On the other hand, in the second excerpt from Paine, he argues that each generation should have the freedom to govern itself and act independently from the preceding generations. Paine rejects the notion that earlier generations have any sort of authority or control over future generations. He believes that every generation has the capability and right to determine its own course of action without being bound by the decisions of the past.
In summary, Burke identifies the people making the social contract as a collective including both the present generation and future generations. In contrast, Paine emphasizes the self-governance and autonomy of each individual generation, suggesting that the people making the social contract are solely the individuals of the present generation.
2. With which of these arguments do you think most Americans would agree? Why do you think so?
Determining which argument most Americans would agree with is subjective and can vary depending on individual perspectives and beliefs. However, it is worth noting that the ideas of individual freedom, self-governance, and the right to determine one's own destiny have been fundamental principles in American political thought.
Given this context, it is likely that a significant number of Americans would align more closely with Thomas Paine's argument. Paine's emphasis on the freedom of each generation to govern itself without being restricted by the decisions of previous generations resonates with the American values of liberty, independence, and the pursuit of individual happiness.
Furthermore, Paine's ideas align with the American notion of government deriving its powers from the consent of the governed. The concept of self-determination and the ability of each generation to shape its own destiny align with the ideals of American democracy and participatory governance.
It's important to remember, however, that not all Americans share the same views or beliefs. There will always be a variety of opinions and interpretations of political and social theories.