A Man of Many Sides
Student: Daniel Tang
Address: 11671 Buckingham Rd, Loma Linda, CA 92354
Phone Number: (909) - 522 - 7742
Email: [email protected]
School: Redlands High School
School Address: 840 E. Citrus Avenue, Redlands, CA 92374
School Phone Number: (909 )- 307 - 5500
Student Grade: 11th (Junior)
A renowned French philosophe, Charles de Montesquieu championed the separation and
balance of powers within a government. Ahead of his time, Montesquieu realized how
governmental stability could best be accomplished by three branches of government. By
influencing the founding fathers, his beliefs would later serve a pivotal role in the formulation of
the United States Constitution. An understanding Montesquieu's influence upon the Constitution
can best be ascertained by a compendium of his individual beliefs with further analysis.
1689 marked not only the creation of the English Bill of Rights, but also the birth of
Charles de Montesquieu. Interestingly, Montesquieu's doctrines became an integral portion of
the United States Constitution that would involve its own Bill of Rights. Montesquieu was born
to a wealthy aristocratic just south of Bordeaux, France. Both his father and uncle passed away
during his youth, bequeathing copious amounts of property and wealth upon him, including the
relatively esteemed title of Baron. After studying law, he published the Persian Letters, a
fictional account that satirized European society by use of dramatic irony through a narrative of
two Persian noblemen and their observations in Europe. Although Montesquieu published the
letters anonymously, his identity soon became known throughout France and eventually Europe.
Celebrating his success as an author, Montesquieu embarked upon a trip throughout Europe to
gain more knowledge. During his visit to England, he was elected a member of the Royal
Society. Montesquieu's visit to England would significantly affect his beliefs regarding
government, for he greatly admired the British Constitution and its separation of powers.
Upon Montesquieau's return to France, he published his masterpiece, De l'esprit des lois
(The Spirit of the Laws), a treatise he fashioned over the course of twenty years. Not only did the
masterpiece draw from other famous works such as the Two Treatises of Government, it also
noted many principles regarding the essence of laws. The treatise was so well written that John
Maynard Keynes would later describe Montesquieu as "the French equivalent of Adam Smith,
the greatest of your economists, head and shoulders above the physiocrats in penetration, clearheadedness, and good sense" (Keynes). Although the ancient Greeks were first to institute a
system involving separation of powers, Montesquieu is the sole person accredited with proposing
the tripartite system -- where political power is distributed evenly among the legislative,
executive, and judicial branches (Montesquieu, The Spirit of the Laws: Revised Edition).
The influence of Montesquieu's tripartite system upon the U.S. Constitution cannot be
understated. Donald Lutz, a professor at the University of Houston, performed a study
evaluating whom/what the Founding Fathers quoted most frequently in over 15,000 of their
individual works. Surprisingly, the Founding Fathers quoted Montesquieu more often than any
other figure or work with the exception of the bible (Lutz). The very structure of the United
States government was created using the Constitution, which was created largely created with the
use of Montesquieu's tripartite system.
Considering Montesquieu's background, a statement providing much insight towards his
character would be "If triangles had a god, they would give him three sides" (BrainyQuote). The
controversy surrounding this statement lies in its varied meanings . Montesquieu was possibly
referring to the importance of three branches in the tripartite system, but the use of religion hints
at something more. Montesquieu could have been satirizing the Christian belief that God created
man in his own image by insinuating that humans structured God after themselves and stated the
opposite; this argument is often corroborated by the fact that Montesquieu criticized Christianity.
Instead of supporting atheism though, Montesquieu advocated a secular society still tolerant of
different religions. Montesquieu wrote in his Persian letters "in order to love and conform to
one's religion it is not necessary to hate and persecute those who do not conform to it"
(Montesquieu, Persian Letters: Reprint Edition). Montesquieu could also have been criticizing
Trinitarianism since triangles, being "unintelligent" objects, would create a god with three sides.
Thomas Jefferson was not only a deist, but also a Unitarianism. It is likely that Montesquieu's
Unitarian beliefs influenced Jefferson, who would not only write the Declaration of
Independence, but also heavily contribute towards the principles of the Constitution as a
founding father. Montesquieu's advocacy of secularism induced the founding fathers to create
the separation of church and state within the constitution, allowing for increased religious
freedom.
Perhaps the stability of the United States government lies in its own limitations.
Denizens of the United States typically do not consider overthrowing the government because
the government's structure is ostensibly stable. Yet, it is easy to overlook the worrisome struggle
for power occurring between the branches throughout American history. Individuals residing
within their respective branch of government often attempted to accomplish what they believed
was best for America by overriding the Constitution and usurping power outside of their
jurisdiction. For instance, Franklin D. Roosevelt attempted to expand the supreme court with the
Judicial Procedures Reform Bill of 1937 because the supreme court consistently ruled the New
Deal to be unconstitutional. Roosevelt (the executive branch) essentially attempted to convince
congress (the legislative branch) to alter the supreme court (the judicial branch) in his favor -- a
famous instance depicting the struggle for power between the three branches of government.
Luckily, even the democratic portion of congress sided with the supreme court because
Roosevelt's actions hinged upon despotism. Congress understood that altering the balance of
power between branches may have lead to despotism and hence the collapse of the government
(Sanburn).
Conversely, Lincoln declared martial law in 1863 to suspend habeus corpus, which the
supreme court expectantly deemed unconstitutional. Even in 1861 without congress' permission,
Abraham Lincoln wrote to General Winfield Scott, "If at any point on or in the vicinity of any
military line...you find resistance which renders it necessary to suspend the writ of habeas
corpus..., you...are authorized to suspend that writ" (Gerhard and Woolle). Several uprisings
occurred near Washington D.C. which inhibited the advancement of Union troops; Lincoln
immediately realized that a fleet war could only be accomplished by the suspension of habeus
corpus. With habeus corpus suspended, Lincoln was able to swiftly rid Northern opposition to
Union soldiers. Lincoln's decision to suspend habeus corpus was indeed unconstitutional, but he
performed the action because he felt the Constitution would cease to exist if the North lost the
civil war. Deeming an unconstitutional action as necessary is, to the horror of many, a slippery
slope. Perhaps the North would have still triumphed during the Civil War without Lincoln's
declaration of martial law. Montesquieu's framework in assigning certain branches specific
powers works to a certain extent, but it shatters when specific branches exercise power outside of
their authority.
It is undeniable that Montesquieu's tripartite system in the Constitution provides the
American government its structural stability. It would not be too far of an exaggeration to state
the United States government will exist as long as there is a balanced separation of powers.
Knowing that, the denizens of America are obliged to become well versed in political processes
of their nation, so that should a time come when there is a tip in Montesquieu's beloved balance
of powers, the people of America can properly evaluate and deem whether a temporary tip is
necessary for the preservation of a prosperous and stable government for future generations.
Works Cited
BrainyQuote. Charles de Montesquieu Quotes. 4 December 2014
<http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/c/charles_de_montesquieu.html>.
Gerhard, Peters and John T. Woolle. The American Presidency Project. 4 December 2014
<http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=69791>.
Keynes, John Maynard. The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money. London:
Macmillan & Company, 1936.
Lutz, Donald. Colonial Origins of the American Constitution. Indianapolis: Liberty Fund, 1998.
Montesquieu, Charles de. Persian Letters: Reprint Edition. London: Penguin Classics, 1973.
—. The Spirit of the Laws: Revised Edition. New York: The Colonial Press, 1900.
Sanburn, Josh. Top 10 Government Showdowns. 27 July 2011. 4 December 2014
<http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2085383_2085381_2085
399,00.html>.
Just recently I learned that one of my fellow classmates was accepted into Harvard. After
learning of such a monumental accomplishment, I became fixated upon how I wanted to
approach my life. Since it is my junior year, I continually vacillate between how I am to achieve
happiness. If I work deliberately this year, I shall have a high likelihood of attending an
esteemed college. I only fear of working incessantly to where it becomes a way of life. People
who accomplish too much feel as though they cannot rest. Yet, if I live my life as a continual
attempt to obtain ephemeral endorphins, I would struggle to find satisfaction at the end of my
career. My greatest fear lies in the dread of not contributing to the society which fought for my
happiness and freedom. With that said, I have slowly come to the realization that the ideal way
to live my life is to do what makes me happy from a holistic perspective, including things such
as giving back to society. In middle school I fell in love with math and have competed in it ever
since, qualifying for the prestigious AIME. I also enjoy sharing my interests, which is why I was
the 2014 Cope Mathcounts Coach, leading my middle school team to fourth place in the
competitive chapter competition. My fascination with music's ability to affect human behavior
also motivated me to become trumpet section leader at Cope Middle School and earn "Most
Outstanding Student". Entering high school, I chose to compete in running because I enjoyed
pushing my limits. Since then, I have won "Cross Country MVP" in both 2013 and 2014, while
earning the "Coach's Award" for track. My sophomore mile time placed me among the top 250
sophomore milers in California while earning a "Top 25" Kaura award. Looking back, I
accomplished a meager amount, but I still feel content knowing I can find happiness regardless
of my societal placement. Ultimately, I have realized that my classmate is still the phenomenal
person he was before he was accepted into Harvard. Similarly, it is reassuring to know that my
accomplishments are not what define me, but that I am the one who defines my accomplishments.