Simon Bolivar

Simon Bolivar was born in Caracas, which is now the capital of Venezuela, in 1783. At that time, much of South America was a Spanish colony, and his family colonized the area, as distant relatives of the king of Spain. He was from a very rich family that profited greatly off of the rich minerals in South America. As a rich young man, he went to boarding school in Spain. While in Spain, he married but later returned to South America as an adult to take over the family mining business. Unfortunately, his wife died very soon after their marriage, and Bolivar vowed never to remarry.

Stop here and discuss:  What was South America like when Bolivar was born?  How do you think Bolivar’s wealth affected his life?  Explain why mining could be profitable.

Bolivar was unhappy with Spanish rule in South America. When Joseph Bonaparte became King of Spain in 1807, Bolivar was mad. Bolivar thought that there should be a federation of South American states, much like the newly formed United States of America. He admired the US Revolution and Constitution and respected the recent Haitian Revolution. He thought the French Revolution became too disorderly and bloody. He was greatly influenced by the political philosopher Baron de Montesquieu, who advocated the separation of powers within a government to prevent tyranny or autocracy.

Stop here and discuss:  Why did Bolivar admire the US revolution?  Why did Bolivar respect Montesquieu?

After returning to Caracas, in 1810 Bolivar led several resistance movements against the Spanish government. First, he declared Caracas an independent state then attempted to work with other South American leaders. One of his close co-revolutionaries was Jose San Martin. Together, they joined modern-day Peru, Chile, Venezuela, parts of Brasil, Bolivia, Uruguay and Paraguay. They intended to call the new state “Gran Columbia” and rule it as a federation of independent states. Unfortunately, their efforts became disorganized and chaotic. Indigenous peoples were unsure of who to side with, and communication was difficult. Eventually Bolivar was cornered by Spanish forces and had to flee to exile in 1827. Unfortunately, he died of tuberculosis shortly after leaving South America. Over the next several decades, most countries in South America achieved independence from their European colonizers.

Stop here and discuss:  What was Bolivar’s strategy in fighting Spain?  Why did the revolution become disorderly and chaotic?  Explain why Bolivar had to go into exile.

Simon Bolivar is remembered as “The Great Liberator” and “the George Washington of South America.” Dozens of cities and the country Bolivia were named in his honor. His political ideas have spawned political parties in South America, and are championed by current (and controversial) South American leaders including Hugo Chavez of Venezuela.

Stop here and discuss:  Why was Bolivar called “the Gre at Liberator”?  Why might his ideas be popular today?  How is Bolivar similar to George Washington?

Thomas Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson was born on April 3, 1743 in Virginia. He came from a family of wealthy farmers. The family owned slaves and ran a cotton plantation. When his father died young, Jefferson looked up to his teacher and minister. Jefferson attended school and college and became a lawyer. As a young man, Jefferson took care of his younger siblings. He married Martha Randolf and they had six children. He also had several children with a slave named Sally Hemmings.

Stop here and discuss:  What do you think life was like in 1700s Virginia?  Why do you think Jefferson became a lawyer?

Jefferson participated in Virginia’s legislative group, called the House of Burgesses. This was the first American example of a representative democratic government. This was Jefferson’s favorite type of government, because most people had a say. Jefferson was famous for advocating for the equality of all men despite the fact he owned several slaves. He was outspoken about the natural rights endowed in all people, including life, liberty, property, and the pursuit of happiness. He vehemently opposed having an official religion or a government that supported a specific religion. Jefferson also advocated American independence from Britain. His contemporaries included John Lock and Baron de Montesqieu. An eloquent writer, Jefferson was chosen as the individual to draft the declaration of independence, which was the impetus for the American Revolutionary War.

Stop here and discuss:  Why was the House of Burgesses significant?

 What is a natural right?  Why was Jefferson chosen to write the Declaration of Independence? After the American Revolution, Jefferson continued to play a great role in the American government and the formation of the US Constitution. Jefferson was instrumental in the formation of the three branches of the American government and the Bill of Rights. He strongly favored the Bill of Rights because he felt that natural rights should be recorded and protected by any just government. Jefferson served as Secretary of State under Washington, Vice President under John Adams, and President of the United States from 1801- 1809.

Stop here and discuss:  Why did Jefferson like the Bill of Rights?  Describe Jefferson’s career in government.

Jefferson died on July 4, 1826, on the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. His family continued to play a huge role in American Government. Jefferson is remembered as a contradictory individual who advocated human and natural rights, yet denied these rights to slaves and supported slavery. He is remembered by many city names, and is forever imprinted on American currency.

Stop here and discuss:  Why was the date of Jefferson’s death significant?  Why is Jefferson considered a contradiction?

Thomas Malthus

Thomas Malthus was born to a well-off family in England in 1766. He was an eager student as a young man, and at university focused on math but also studied population theory, politics and human environmental interactions. He became a fixture at the major universities of Europe in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He was a modest and quiet man, who became a leader in the Church of England. He refused to have his portrait painted because of a cleft palate. He married his cousin, Harriet, and had three children. He was known to his students as “Pop” Malthus, because of his famed population theory.

Stop now and discuss:  How do you think Malthus’ economic stability influenced his life?  What was his topic of study throughout life?

Malthus was prominent during the Age of Enlightenment, a time which most philosophers believed that the human race could be perfected into a type of utopian, or ideal, society. Malthus was very skeptical about this idea, due to his scientific and mathematical studies. He contended that human population would grow too large, due to improved technologies and living conditions. This population growth, according to Malthus, would cause famine, disease, and war, all of which would un-do all of humanities gains. As solutions, he suggested controlling the birth rate to control the population, and ending of government aid to the poor, which he believed did little to end poverty. Stop now and discuss:  What kept Malthus from believing in a possible utopian society?  What would be the eventual negative effects of population growth according to Malthus?  How did Malthus wish to curb population growth?

Malthus was involved as an adviser to the British government with regards to its food laws. Parliament had set maximum prices for food, to prevent starvation and unrest amongst the poor. Malthus was opposed to this pricing, claiming that it was unfair to the farmers and allowed the poor to remain poor. He opposed charitable and church interventions, because in his economic theory, the poor needed to be given nothing in order to be inspired to earn something. His theory may sound heartless, but it was very economically and mathematically based, and he found many, many followers. Most of the British government were followers of Malthusian economics during the early and mid 1800s.

Stop now and discuss:  What was Malthus’ solution to poverty in England?  How was his theory met by the British parliament?  Which portion of society would Malthus suggest receive power in the government?

Malthus died at his home of natural causes in 1834. He is well remembered and his books remain extremely popular and controversial. Many modern environmentalists follow Malthus’ population theory. He was (and still is) abhorred by the poor, and those sympathetic to the plights of the poor. Charles Dickens famous Ebeneezer Scrooge is follower of Malthus, famously refusing to give to the poor and sick, because "If they would rather die they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population." He influenced the writings of individuals as diverse as Charles Darwin, Karl Marx, Vladimir Lenin, and Aldous Huxley.

Stop now and discuss:

 What makes Malthus’ theories appealing to environmentalists?  How was Malthus viewed by the poor or supporters of the poor?

Niccolo Machiavelli

Machiavelli was born in 1469 in Florence, now part of modern Italy. Little is known about his young life. As a young man, he spent much of his time in school, working with a famed Latin scholar. He attended the University of Florence, and traveled around much of Europe, and discoursed with the brightest minds of the time period. He was appointed as the Chancellor of the Republic of Florence. He was a trusted adviser to Florence’s lead governmental figure. When this figure was beaten and exiled, Machiavelli was beaten, tortured and exiled as well. In this exile, he wrote many of his most famous writings, including The Prince. All of his books were published posthumously, after his death. Stop now and discuss: What happened to Machiavelli while he was the Chancellor of the Republic? When were his works published?

In The Prince, Machiavelli speaks of moral authority and power. Most philosophers of the time believed that political leaders were expected to be morally good and to earn the respect of their followers. Machiavelli contended that this was not necessary—that the only concern of a person in power should be acquiring and maintaining his position of power. Once in control, the “prince” may use his authority and power to force the public to follow his will. Claiming that “there are no laws without good arms [weapons], I will not consider laws but speak only of arms.” Machiavelli believed that all truly legitimate leaders used force to maintain their legitimacy. Machiavelli viewed most citizens as stupid and easily manipulated, and only able to respond to the emotion of fear. Machiavelli felt that leaders must use fear to manipulate subjects and maintain power.

Stop now and discuss:

Machiavelli uses the term “prince” to generally refer to what position? According to Machiavelli, what should the prince’s primary focus be as leader? How did Machiavelli view the general public?

Machiavelli believed that leaders needed to possess a certain set of personality traits to be effective. One is the ability to act in an evil fashion. He must also be able to alternate between good and evil as the situation dictated. Machiavelli openly admired the French monarchy for its control of the population, threat of force, disarmament of the people[taking away weapons from citizens], and orderly application of law and order. However, Machiavelli was sometimes inconsistent, and occasionally wrote favorably about Republican government.

Stop now and discuss: What do you think “evil” meant to Machiavelli? How does Machiavelli contradict himself?

Machiavelli died in exile in 1527. His body was never recovered, but numerous churches in Florence bear plaques memorializing him. His works became very famous and controversial after his death. Machiavelli’s ideas influenced dictators throughout history. Machiavelli also left a mark on psychology and political science. In psychology, there is a disorder called Machiavellianism, in which a person is deceptive or manipulative for personal gain, and exhibit sociopath symptoms.

Stop now and discuss: Why do you think leaders in Italy memorialized Machiavelli?

Voltaire

François-Marie Arouet, better known by his pen name, Voltaire, was born in 1694 in France to a fairly wealthy family. Voltaire was the only child of five to survive past childhood. He went to school and university, and became fluent in Latin, English and Spanish. After college, Francois wanted to become a write, but his father wanted him to be a lawyer, so a lawyer he became. However, he continued to write in secret, publishing satirical poems and essays that were famous for being witty and poking fun at the French monarchy, the Catholic church and other government institutions. He served a prison term at the French Bastille, and there took up the pen name Voltaire. He was later exiled from France and lived in England for several years.

Stop now and discuss: Why do you think Voltaire was imprisoned and even exiled?

Voltaire was embarrassed by France’s absolutism, and admired Britain’s limited monarchy, Bill of Rights, and support for freedom of speech, religion and judicial system. Voltaire also advocated for the end of slavery, everywhere. In England, Voltaire also supported the works of the little-known playwright, Shakespeare. When his two years of exile were finished, Voltaire returned to France and published a book that explained how the British government was completely superior to France’s, and he was promptly exiled again.

Stop now and discuss: What did Voltaire appreciate about the English laws? What was Voltaire’s hope for France?

In his political writings, Voltaire was especially critical of the role of the church in government. His writings appealed to a few individuals in the French monarchy, and he was allowed to return to France. In Voltaire’s most famous work, Candide, he satirically criticized Leibnizian optimism, which was a belief that since God is good, nothing bad will happen. In the book, the main character optimistically travels through natural disasters, corrupt governments, and the wild “new world” of South America.

Stop now and discuss: How would an absolute monarch react to Voltaire’s beliefs about church in government?

Voltaire died the year Candide was published, 1759. He had taken several lovers, including his niece, but did not produce any children (two lovers died in childbirth). Voltaire is still considered one of the greatest authors of all time. His style of using humor to prove a point was a refreshing change from most other philosophers of the time period, whose writing was very dry. Political and cultural satirists, from Mark Twain to Joseph Heller to Stephen Colbert all acknowledge the influence of Voltaire on their political ideas and literary contributions. Voltaire was originally buried on the outskirts of Paris, because he was banned from the burial sites by the monarchy. However, in 1791, after the French revolution, the National Assembly had his coffin moved to the Pantheon in Paris, a famous resting place for the political elite. Voltaire was considered a forerunner of the French Revolution, born a generation too soon.

Stop now and discuss: What was unique about Voltaire’s writing of philosophy? What in Voltaire’s writings inspired a revolution of the people?