Three Traditions in American Political Thought

There is a lot of talk today, especially in conservative circles, about how much we have changed since the early days of the republic and how much the view of the Constitution has changed. I thought it would be a good idea to examine the identifiable political traditions which existed at the time of the Revolution and the subsequent Constitutional Convention. Scholars name three important belief systems that different Americans espoused in one degree or another: Liberalism, Republicanism and Ascriptivism.

Liberalism

Liberalism is a set of beliefs that have their genesis in the ideas of John Locke. In the 17^th century, this British philosopher posited that government was an artificial construct which men placed over themselves in order to secure certain individual rights. This emphasis on the individual is what makes liberalism stand out from other pertinent political philosophies, such as Republicanism.

The language in the Declaration of Independence - about life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness – is derived directly from the Liberalism that was embedded in the early American psyche. Liberalism speaks of rights of individuals and their necessary defense.

Republicanism

There was another strain of thought that was also powerful among Americans at this time. Some people consider the philosophical tenets of Republicanism to be at odds with those of Liberalism, though they are nevertheless expressed and adored by many famous Americans simultaneously.

For a republican, government and public life in general were inextricable from the concept of liberty. Government, from this point of view, was not seen as the necessary evil exactly as Liberals conceived it to be. Instead, it was the achievement of the common good. Government was the sacrifice in which men engaged to fulfill human potentials. Obligations rather than rights were the primary concerns of Republican thinkers.

Ascriptivism

Some scholars might draw the line there and leave it at that. Two central philosophies, liberalism and republicanism, both joined and divided the first Americans. However, there was a third philosophy which dwelled in American hearts and was either explicit or implicit in their words and actions. Philosophy may be too strong a word for Ascriptivism. It may be likened more to a religious belief. It merits mention here primarily because it has overshadowed these other philosophies.

Ascriptivism is the term applied to the apparent belief that Americans felt about the destiny of their fledgling nation. They saw themselves as possessing distinctive traits which separated them from other men. These characteristics were derived largely from their Anglo-Saxon background, the seeds of democracy planted by the Magna Carta of 1215 and the resulting centuries of English Common Law.

Most importantly, ascriptivism suggested that America had a destiny to fulfill. This would be the guiding feelings behind Manifest Destiny, the impulse to seize the so-called virgin land from the savage Indians and build a New World that was free of the encrustations and corruptions of the Old.

Where Are They Now?

These three sets of beliefs, none of them contradictory but each with its own agenda, would fuel the war against Britain. These philosophies would free thirteen colonies from centuries of older European traditions as they replaced them with the newer politics of men like Locke and Rousseau.

The question for us today regards whether these philosophies have any meaning to modern Americans. The concern for individual rights does seem to have gained predominance. Some feel that this has altered the way that Americans see the Constitution. The evolution of that document is a good topic for another essay.