Debating the Constitution and the Federalist Position Overview: In this project you will analyze the Federalist and Anti-Federalist debates over the U.S. Constitution.
Instructions: Carefully read the following documents:
1) The Federalist position as articulated by James Madison in Federalist Paper #10:
http://presspubs.uchicago.edu/founders/documents/v1ch4s19.html
2) The Anti-Federalist position as presented by James Winthrop, writing as “Agrippa,” Agrippa Letter, no.4:
http://presspubs.uchicago.edu/founders/documents/v1ch8s21.html
The Question:
In a brief analytical essay no more than three pages long, compare and contrast the arguments for and against ratifying the U.S. Constitution put forward James Madison in Federalist 10 and James Winthrop, writing as “Agrippa,” in Agrippa Letter, no.
4. How do the authors present the prospect for freedom and liberty in a large, or “extended,” republic like the United States?
What are the most important issues at stake in the debate?
You also need to properly cite any quoted material. The two sources you cite in your essay need to be footnoted in the following form for the purposes of this paper: 1 Federalist #10 or 1Agrippa Letter, no. 4.
