AP US GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
SUMMER ASSIGNMENT
To prepare for AP US Government & Politics, it is imperative that students become familiar with
foundational texts in government and the basic structure of U.S. government. Therefore, students
enrolled in the course for the 2016-2017 school year will read a background of the social contract
and its theorization by John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and watch a few
Crash Course videos to introduce the basics of U.S. government.
To complete the assignment, students must have access to the internet and Google accounts.
Please be aware that students should be receiving accounts through the school and should use that
account if it is known. If you do not know that you have an HHS gmail account, you can use your
own for now.
Students will submit their work through a Google Form – links and due dates will
be posted on Ms. Gorski’s webpage!
1- Introduction to Social Contract Theory from Internet Encyclopedia of
Philosophy
http://www.iep.utm.edu/soc-cont/
Form Link: http://goo.gl/forms/tFHJvMtjpArVTaK63
1. Which of the following best defines social contract theory?
a. People’s obligation to society are dependent on an agreement among them to abide
by the rules of that society
b. People form a contract in order to determine how the government will operate
c. Social contract theory is rightly associated with modern moral and political theory
d. Social contract theory fails to account for feminist views, so it is invalid
2. Which of these is true with regard to Socrates’s view of justice?
a. Just men recognize their obligation to the state by obeying the laws
b. Justice also requires a well-regulated soul
c. Socrates does not believe the social contract is the original source of justice
d. All of the above
3. What political event greatly shaped the views of Thomas Hobbes?
a. Hundred Years’ War
b. American Civil War
c. English Civil War
d. War of the Roses
4. How would Thomas Hobbes describe human nature?
a. People are generally good and can regulate themselves
b. People are self-interested and consequently war is endemic and inevitable
c. People are self-interested, but a democratic government can prevent war
d. People are inherently good and prefer to compromise rather than conflict
5. Why then, would Hobbes argue, do people decide to join society and live under a sovereign?
a. They are reasonable and can see the benefits of submitting to political authority
b. They prefer the organization and order of a known set of laws
c. They are rational and therefore prefer to know who the sovereign is
d. They are forced to subjugate to a strong ruler because they lack organized resistance
6. How did Locke perceive the state of nature?
a. State of war
b. Perfect liberty
c. Law of nature
d. Pre-moral
7. With what was John Locke concerned in his analysis of the social contract?
a. Morality
b. Religion
c. Property
d. Liberty
8. Why do people unite under a social contract according to Locke?
a. To escape endemic war present in the state of nature
b. To recreate a new society under a new government upheld by the people
c. To gain things lacking in the state of nature: laws, judges, and enforcement of laws
d. To preserve the wealth and property of the state
9. In what historical period did Rousseau write?
a. Middle Ages
b. Renaissance
c. Reformation
d. Enlightenment
10. How do Locke and Rousseau differ in their views of property?
a. Locke promotes communism whereas Rousseau promotes capitalism
b. Locke sees property negatively, but Rousseau sees property negatively for different
reasons
c. Locke sees property as something to protect, whereas Rousseau sees property as a
corrupting agent
d. None of the above
11. What is the purpose of politics, according to Rousseau?
a. To try to revert to the egalitarian state of nature
b. To prevent wars and protect private property
c. To protect liberty and provide for the general will
d. To free man from the metaphorical chains
12. What type of government would Rousseau support?
a. Monarchy
b. Direct Democracy
c. Representative Democracy
d. Republic
13. Which philosopher wrote Leviathan?
a. Socrates
b. Hobbes
c. Locke
d. Rousseau
14. Which philosopher supported the right to rebel?
a. Hobbes
b. Locke
c. Rousseau
d. Filmer
15. Which philosopher supported absolute monarchy?
a. Hobbes
b. Locke
c. Rousseau
d. Filmer
16. Which philosopher theorized the “general will?”
a. Hobbes
b. Locke
c. Rousseau
d. Filmer
17. How does Carole Pateman criticize social contract theory in The Sexual Contract?
a. Social contract theory does not advocate for equality of women
b. Social contract theory just focuses on one form of patriarchy shifting to another
c. Social contract theory does not explain the rise of female political leaders
d. Social contract theory does not explain marriage contract, prostitution contract, or the
contract for surrogate motherhood
18. What archetype, consistently reinforced by social contract philosophers, cannot really claim
to represent all people, according to feminists who critique social contract theory?
a. “Renaissance Man”
b. “Economic Man”
c. “Universal Man”
d. “Humanist Man”
19. Why do whites have more social, economic, and political power according to Mills’s
arguments in The Racial Contract?
a. White men are seen as full persons, but minorities are not
b. Minorities lack legal rights to enter into contracts
c. Whites have more privileges than minorities
d. Europeans got the upper hand in defining social contract theory
20. According to Mills, what is one reason why we continue to downplay racism in the West?
a. Our political system is perfectly conceived, but imperfectly applied
b. The social contract keeps hidden true reality, where some have full rights and others do
not
c. We cannot fix racism by adding more non-whites to the mix
d. The racial contract promises to make it possible to live up to the norms of Western
political traditions
21. Do you most agree with the reasoning of Hobbes, Locke, or Rousseau in terms of describing
the state of nature and why people come together to live under governments? Explain.
2-Federalism: Crash Course Government & Politics #4 [9 minutes]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0gosGXSgsI&index=4&list=PL8dPuuaLjXtOfse2ncvffeelTrqvhrz8H
Form Link for ALL Crash Course Questions: http://goo.gl/forms/kEV63cxYTae9YMIV2
1. What is federalism?
a. Power located in central government
b. Power located in state government
c. Power divided between national and state governments
2. What sphere of government usually handles licensing?
a. National
b. State
c. Local
3. What sphere of government usually handles foreign relations, like war?
a. National
b. State
c. Local
4. Which type of federalism spans from the 1800s to the New Deal?
a. Cooperative Federalism
b. New Federalism
c. Dual Federalism
5. In what areas does the national government have jurisdiction?
a. Patents
b. Interstate Roads
c. Tariffs
d. Currency
e. Licensing
f. Property Laws
g. Education
6. In what areas does the state government have jurisdiction?
a. Patents
b. Property Laws
c. Banking Laws
d. Insurance
e. Family Law
f. Morality
g. Education
h. Tariffs
i. Currency
7. The interpretation of which clause determines the difference between Dual Federalism and
Cooperative Federalism?
a. Establishment Clause
b. Commerce Clause
c. 3/5 Clause
8. How does the federal government compel states to adopt policies aligned with national
initiatives?
a. Mandates
b. Categorical Grants-in-Aid
c. No Child Left Behind
d. Marble Cake Federalism
9. What is the formal name for the rules established by the national government that states must
follow in Regulated Federalism?
a. Categorical Grants-In-Aid
b. Mandates
c. Amendments
10. What is the goal of New Federalism?
a. Differentiate between national and state powers
b. Facilitate cooperation between levels of government
c. Give more power to the states
3- Constitutional Compromises: Crash Course Government & Politics #5 [9 minutes]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCCmuftyj8A&index=5&list=PL8dPuuaLjXtOfse2ncvffeelTrqvhrz8
H
1. What was the first American government, in place for the first 10 years after the Revolution?
a. Declaration of Independence
b. Articles of Confederation
c. Constitution
2. What was the major flaw of the Articles?
a. No executive or judicial powers
b. No ability to tax
c. Couldn’t accommodate different interests of states
d. All of the above
3. What type of representation did the Virginia Plan support?
a. Proportional Representation
b. Equal Number Representation
c. Bicameral Representation
4. What type of representation did the New Jersey Plan support?
a. Proportional Representation
b. Equal Number of Reps
c. Bicameral Representation
5. What was the result of the Connecticut Compromise?
a. Separation of Powers
b. Bicameral Legislature
c. Federalism
6. What clause in Article 1, Section 2 of the Constitution settled the dispute over representation of
slaves?
a. Connecticut Compromise
b. 3/5 Compromise
c. Wisconsin Compromise
7. How many states had to ratify the Constitution before it could go into effect?
a. 7
b. 9
c. 13
8. What group did not want the Constitution to be ratified?
a. Federalists
b. Anti-Federalists
c. Whigs
9. How did Federalists differ from Anti-Federalists?
a. Federalists favored a weak central government
b. Federalists favored a strong central government
c. Federalists only wanted to amend the Articles
10. Why did the Anti-Federalists dislike the Constitution?
a. They feared a strong central government would be tyrannical
b. They did not want to be taxed by a central government
c. They thought states would best protect liberty
d. All of the above
4- The Bicameral Congress: Crash Course US Government & Politics #2 [9 minutes]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9defOwVWS8&list=PL8dPuuaLjXtOfse2ncvffeelTrqvhrz8H&index
=2
1. What are the two houses of Congress?
a. Senate & House of Representatives
b. Senate & Congress
c. House of Representatives & Congress
d. Congress & Parliament
2. How old do you have to be to be in the house?
a. 20
b. 25
c. 30
d. 35
3. How many years do you need to have been a citizen?
a. 5
b. 7
c. 9
d. 10
4. How many members are in the House?
a. 400
b. 425
c. 435
d. 450
5. How old do you have to be to be in the Senate?
a. 20
b. 25
c. 30
d. 35
6. How many years do you need to have been a citizen?
a. 5
b. 7
c. 9
d. 10
7. How many senators are there?
a. 50
b. 100
c. 435
d. 535
8. Which amendment changed the selection process for the Senate?
a. 2
b. 13
c. 17
d. 20
9. What role does the House have in impeachment proceedings?
a. Prosecuting the president on trial
b. Serving as the jury
c. Presiding over the proceedings
d. Drawing up charges
10. Who decides presidential elections if they are tied?
a. Senate
b. House
c. President
d. Supreme Court
11. Where must revenue bills originate?
a. Senate
b. House
c. House Judiciary Committee
d. Senate Taxation Committee
12. Who holds impeachment trials?
a. Senate
b. House
c. President
d. Supreme Court
13. Who ratifies treaties?
a. House
b. President
c. Supreme Court
d. Senate
14. Who confirms presidential appointments?
a. House
b. Senate
c. Supreme Court
d. Vice President
15. What was the historical reason for having a bicameral legislature?
a. The framers wanted to avoid an elected legislature like Parliament
b. The states wanted to divide the legislature
c. The framers wanted to have a larger legislature
d. The states could not agree on how to configure a unicameral legislature
16. What was the practical reason for dividing the legislature?
a. Add more members to Congress
b. Restrict its power
c. Don’t need as large a building
d. Assign different term lengths
17. Why do Senators have to be older than House Representatives?
a. The framers wanted the Upper House to be wiser
b. The framers wanted the Lower House to be wiser
c. The framers believed the Senate would be more responsive to the people
d. The framers acquiesced to state requests
18. How long is a Senator’s term?
a. 2 years
b. 4 years
c. 6 years
d. 10 years
19. Why were House terms limited to 2 years?
a. To have a high turnover rating and allow more people to be in the House in their
lifetime
b. To allow framers’ sons to all have a chance of being in the House
c. To insulate representatives from the passions of the populace
d. To keep representatives more responsive to their districts
20. Why did the House get the ability to raise taxes?
a. There are more people in the House
b. The House had fewer duties than the Senate, so they got this one
c. It’s the most democratic institution in government
d. The Senate and President were already closely linked through different constitutional
arrangements