Redeeming My Time
Matthew J. Peterson, ABD

The Public Good and the State Constitutions

September 21st 2009 in American Founding, Liberal-ism v. Republican-ism

Gordon Wood, in the Radicalism of the American Revolution and in his chapter entitled “The History of Rights in Early America” in The Nature of Rights at the American Founding and Beyond edited by Barry Shain, says:

…several of the states wrote into their Revolutionary constitutions declarations, like that of New Hampshire, that “government is instituted for the common benefit, protection, and security of the whole community, and not for the private interest or emolument of any man, family, or class of men.”

How many state constitutions before and after the adoption of the federal Constitution in 1789 asserted something similar?  What did they mean by such words?  Why did they feel the need to make such declarations?  How many state constitutions mention the common good or something similar before and after the federal Constitution was adopted?  What did they mean by this?  What was the relation between this assertion and the bills of rights also present in such documents?




required



required - won't be displayed


Your Comment:

I use the phrase “common good” in opposition to individual rights in the previous post because some term must be used, and “common good” comprehends other phrases with related meanings. The Federalists and Anti-Federalists themselves did use this phrase, but they also spoke of the “public” or “general” good, the “common,” “public” or “general” [...]

Previous Entry

Over at Dissense.com, a site I plan on contributing to from time to time, Felix York says good riddance to Plato and other classic texts:
Modern academia exhibits a strange incongruity. The physics professor who assigns Aristotle to her students is a laughingstock, but the metaphysics professor who assigns Aristotle [...]

Next Entry

Recent Comments
Categories
Blogroll