Ss always, Scott, wonderful. I am curious as to just how singular Madison was in the whole faction against faction approach. Is this Madison's idea from while cloth, or was he synthesizing?
That's a good question. Madison wasn't starting from scratch: philosophers from Aristotle to Montesquieu had wrestled with the issue.
Madison's approach is more of an evolution from David Hume's "Idea of a Perfect Commonwealth," where he argued that larger republics could sometimes better moderate factions. Federalist No. 10 is distinctive and influential because it takes the unique position that size could actually be a strength, making it harder for any one faction to dominate.
He was definitely synthesizing earlier ideas, but offering an original solution.
Ss always, Scott, wonderful. I am curious as to just how singular Madison was in the whole faction against faction approach. Is this Madison's idea from while cloth, or was he synthesizing?
That's a good question. Madison wasn't starting from scratch: philosophers from Aristotle to Montesquieu had wrestled with the issue.
Madison's approach is more of an evolution from David Hume's "Idea of a Perfect Commonwealth," where he argued that larger republics could sometimes better moderate factions. Federalist No. 10 is distinctive and influential because it takes the unique position that size could actually be a strength, making it harder for any one faction to dominate.
He was definitely synthesizing earlier ideas, but offering an original solution.
Fascinating look back at the age-old question of how to build and maintain durable models of complex human cooperation. Thank you Scott!