cicero n aristotle; constitution

Cicero Aristotle Constitution Both Aristotle and Cicero Argue the Merits...

Essay Copyright Infringement

College Research Paper Help & Custom Book Reports

Cicero Aristotle Constitution

Both Aristotle and Cicero argue the merits of mixed constitutions, a balance between monarchy, aristocracy and polity. The concept is widely attributed to the more modern resources used by the founding fathers but can be drawn from ***** his*****rical sources. The first three articles set up the threefold separation of powers, said to have been modeled on M*****tesquieu's study, which on this point was incorrect, of ***** British government. (Columbia Electronic encyclopedia 6th ed) It seems that the s*****ry is much older and history dictates the importance of such ***** of power.

***** demonstrates his belief in the ideal ***** a three-tiered *****al system consist*****g of the executive, legislative ***** judicial branches of ***** government in several of ***** works but most notably in this passage from Poltis:

Aristotle agrees, "the better ***** constitution is mixed, the more permanent it is" For him the well-ordered constitution results from the proper ordering of three factors: the deliberative body, the mag*****tracies, and the judiciary. (Lloyd 1998)

His meaning is clear, according to ***** in that ***** best governments contain balances of power ***** leaves no one ***** the ***** divisions in a state of greater power than the others, to reduce the possibility of either internal corruption and coercion or overthrow ***** one of the three *****, resulting in despotism.

***** agrees, by stating rather eloquently as claimed by Lloyd in his work on the origins of ***** balance ***** power within the US Constitution. Cicero (Rep. 1.69) also attests to the stability of a mixed constitution... "For the prim*****ry forms already menti*****d degenerate e*****ily into the corresponding perverted *****, the king being replaced by a despot, ***** ***** by an oligarchical faction, and the people by a mob and anarchy; ***** whereas these forms are frequently changed into new ones, ***** does not usually happen in the case of the mixed and evenly balanced constitution, except through great faults in ***** governing class." Cicero too declares the mixed constitution the best form of government (*****. 2.41), "***** most splendid conceivable" (Rep. 2.42: quo nihil possit esse praeclarius). He concludes, "a ***** of government which is ********** equal mixture of the three good forms is superior to any of *****m ***** itself " (Rep. 2.66: sed id praestare singulis, quod e tribus primis es***** modice temperatum). (Lloyd)

There are many examples of these *****s reflected in the Constitution of the United States. As the first three articles attest the division of ***** is constitutional and the wording of ***** passages of the ***** ***** express the *****eals of not only the separations but also the checks of each subset, one ***** ***** other.

Every bill ***** shall have passed the House ***** Representatives ***** the Senate *****, before it become a l*****w, be presented to the President of the ***** States; if he approve ***** shall sign *****, but if ***** he shall return it, w*****h his objections, ***** that House in which it shall have originated, who shal