Federalist Number 10 by James Madison - Essay Example

The weakness was the faction inherent in every government and the strength is the republic form of government that will deter and weed out factionalism in government.
For Madison, the faction in a government creates a problem because certain select individuals who are minorities are inimical to the greater good. Individuals being men are predisposed to advance interests favorable to them and this creates a problem in public service. Moreover, when a faction rules the government, the people belonging to such a faction will only advance their self-interests rather than the public good. Being such, government agencies will just become a vehicle of private greed instead of an instrument that will serve the greater good. Madison pointed out that a government dominated by a faction is no longer a democracy because it only serves the narrow interest of a few people. In sum, factions create problems in government because self-interest will rule instead of advancing public interest and public service.

The strength of the Federalist Paper No.10 lies in its proposal on how to address the faction in government and how to at least minimize its adverse effects. In Federalist Paper No.10, the idea of a republic is proposed as a solution to the problem posed by a faction. This proposed republic is different from the pure and populist democracy because it is capable of protecting minorities and promotes greater good than pure democracy which could become a vehicle that will be used by factions.

According to Federalist Paper No.10, the weakness of a republican government can be reduced through the mechanism of representation. This kind of mechanism allows a greater probability for capable leaders to be elected than just those who are popular but only represent the interest of a faction. Having capable leaders to be elected in office is favorable to people because they would tend to craft policies that serve the greater good and will tend to advance the interest of the many instead of the few such as those interests inherent in a faction.

Also, having this kind of mechanism in government safeguards government institutions from the private greed of individuals and leaders since the political environment only welcomes candidates that have a broader appeal to the electorate. In short, the republic form of government as proposed by the Federalist Paper No.10 to deter factionalism in the government is an effective mechanism to weed out populist tendencies that advance private interest. Read More