u.s. government and politics--unit 1

Glorious Revolution

the overthrow of King James II of England

articles of confederation

the plan of government for the United States during the Revolutionary War and for several years after the war; it was replaced by the Consitution.

sovereignty

the power of a nation-state to determine its government

popular sovereignty

the right of the citizens of a country to control that country's politics.

natural rights

the rights all humans have at birth, which no government or institution can take away.

consitution

the set of rules that define and organize a government.

corroboration

the use of multiple sources to confirm a conclusion

Thomas Hobbes

(1558-1679) an English philosopher whose theory of the social contract calls for an all-powerful government that restrains people's worst impulses. He wrote "The Leviathan."

autocracy

a system of government in which one person-generally a dictator-holds all of the power.

John Locke

(1632-1704) an English philosopher who argued that people have natural rights and that if a leader fails to protect those rights, the people can remove that leader and choose another. these ideas directly affected political revolutions of the late 1700s. He wrote "The Two Treatises of Government."

the Enlightenment

(1650-1800) a European cultural movement that emphasized rationality and individualism.

Baron de Monstesquieu

(1689-1755) a French philosopher who argued that the powers of a central government should be separated into three different branches. he wrote "The Spirit of Laws", inspired the division of power in the U.S. constitution.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

(1712-1778) a Swiss philosopher whose ideas on popular sovereignty and republicanism influenced later political movements. He wrote "The Social Contract," based on the idea that the general will of the people was best for society.

Thomas Paine

(1737-1809) an English-born writer and political advocate. in his pamphlet, "Common Sense," he attacked British policies as violations of colonists; natural rights and promoted independence. his ideas convinced many americans to support independence from great britain.

Thomas Jefferson

(1743-1826) the third president of the united states. he was the main author of the declaration of independence.

Declaration of Independence

(1776) a document explaining the American colonies' reasons for breaking away from Great Britain. it includes many ideas drawn form Enlightenment philosophers.

democracy

a system of government in which people rule, usually by voting.

monarchy

a system of government in which political power is inherited and control over the state is given to one individual.

context

the events in politics and society that influence the creation of a text or source.

Magna Carta

a charter, signed by King John of England in 1215, that established the rights of free English citizens. it placed some limits on the authority of the monarchy and served to inspire later documents, including the u.s. consitution.

claim of cause and effect

a claim that focuses on the connections between events and outcomes

claim of definition

a claim that identifies how a concept or term should be defined

generalization

a conclusion about a group or event that goes beyond the exact information available.

republic

a democratic government or political unit in which people elect representatives to make decisions. it is also referred to as a representative or indirect democracy.

direct democracy

a form of democracy in which all people gather together to make decisions

indirect democracy

a form of democracy in which people elect representatives to make decisions. it is also known as representative democracy.

authoritarian government

a government controlled by an individual or small group with absolute political power. there are no restrictions on the ruler or the ruler's power.

constitutional government

a government whose powers are limited by a written document--a constitution.

second continental congress

a group of colonial delegates who first gathered in Philadelphia in 1775. this group produced the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and ratified the articles of confederation as the first governing document of the united states.

Northwest Ordinance

a law that organized the lands north of the ohio river and east of the mississippi river. it divided this region into territories and set out rules of incorporating the territories into the union as states. the ordinance was originally passed by Congress under the articles of confederation in 1787. the u.s. government passed it again in 1789.

feudalism

a loosely organized system of government in which local lords governed their own lands but owned military service and other support to a more powerful lord. it was most common during the middle ages, from about the 5th century CE to about the 15th.

citizen

a person who owes loyalty to and is protected by a country. they have certain rights and responsibilities within their country.

bias

a person's preferences or prejudices.

point of view

a person's unique perspective on an issue.

Petition of Right

a petition passed by the British government in 1628 that lists specific rights that the king could not take or violate. through this document the King was forbidden to imprison people without cause, impose certain taxes, force citizens to house soldiers, and use martial law.

main idea

a short statement or phrase that explains the most important information found in a source.

oligarchy

a system of government in which a small group of people hold all of the power.

dictatorship

a system of government in which all of the power is held by one person or a small group of people.

primary source

a text that contains a firsthand account of an event or period in history. some examples are diaries, logs, letters, and autobiographies. photographs, drawings, and pieces of clothing can also be thrown into this category.

secondary source

a text, drawing, or other work created by people who were not eyewitnesses to the events or periods being described. these interpret information from primary sources.

anarchy

a total lack of government

confederal government

a type of government in which independent states join together, forming a central government with only limited powers over the states.

unitary government

a type of government in which power is centralized in one location

federal government

a type of government in which power is divided between central government and smaller, more localized governments.

parliamentary government

a type of government in which the executive branch is composed of members from the legislative branch.

presidential government

a type of government in which the legislative branch and the executive branch are separate and provide checks and balances on each other's powers.

social contract

an Enlightenment idea describing the relationship between citizens and governments. in a social contract, citizens give up some of their freedoms in exchange for the protection and stability provided by the government.

English Bill of Rights

an act of the British government written in 1689 that lifts the rights of the people to be represented in Parliament. these rights are in addition to those the Magna Carta already provided for individuals.

Mayflower Compact

an agreement signed in 1620 by colonists traveling on the Mayflower. It established a government for the Plymouth colony, allowing them to elect leaders and pass laws.

claim

an argument or point that has not yet been proven

totalitarian government

an authoritarian government that seeks to control all aspects of society

prediction

an educated guess about the future based on available information

nation-state

an independent state inhabited primarily by a group of people who share a culture and language.

claim of value

argues that something is good or bad, right or wrong

claim of fact

asserts that something is true or not true

defensible

capable of being supported by example or research.

monitoring

checking to make sure you understand what you are reading.

city-states

cities that had their own governments, independent of those other cities

arguable

controversial; not automatically assumed by reasonable people

text features

elements of text that stand out from other parts of a page. these elements can include bold-faced text, block quotes, and titles.

public policy

government plans or actions that attempt to solve a society's problems.

inferences

ideas you develop based on information you have about a topic.

authority

in government, power that is recognized as legitimate.

power

in government, the control over the actions of others.

evidence

information that supports a claim, thesis, or main idea.

visual cues

non-text elements that stand out from other parts of a page, these elements can include images, color, and video.

propaganda

particularly biased or misleading information used to promote a political cause or point of view.

claim of policy

proposes a change

political scientists

scholars who study political beliefs and government systems

fix-up strategies

techniques that help you understand a confusing part of a text.

rule of law

the acceptance of the legitimacy of the law and general obedience of the law.

rhetoric

the art of using language persuasively

reliability

the degree to which a source can be depended on to be accurate.

credibility

the degree to which a source can be depended on to be consistently accurate; corroberated sources are more likely to be credible.

separation of powers

the division of power between multiple parts of a government. for example, the power of the u.s. government is divided between the executive, judicial, and legislative branches.

active reading strategies

ways of interacting with texts that help readers understand what they mean.

-asking questions -making mental images -predicting -summarizing -activating prior knowledge -drawing inferences -using text features and visual cues -monitoring and applying fix-up strategies

what are the 8 active reading strategies?

-point of view -context -accuracy -bias

what are the four factors of determining the reliability of a source?

-autocracy -oligarchy -theocracy

what are the three types of dictatorships?

asking questions

which active reading strategy can help you clarify confusing points, track information, notice unexpected details, and make connections by questioning?

summarizing

which active reading strategy forces you to figure out what is most important about the text by summing up the main ideas of what you are reading?

drawing inferences

which active reading strategy helps you gain a full understanding of a text by coming up with a conclusion based on what you have read?

monitoring and applying fix-up strategies

which active reading strategy helps you to notice problems and can help you find what makes the most sense while reading?

making mental images

which active reading strategy helps you to understand and remember what you read by picturing ideas in your head?

predicting

which active reading strategy helps you to understand the text, and think about and estimate what is going to happen next? this should be based off of what you know about the text.

using text features and visual cues

which active reading strategy involves looking for features and cues that can help you identify the main idea and other important information in a text?

activating prior knowledge

which active reading strategy involves you thinking about what you already know about a topic? it also prepares your mind to take in new information about a topic more easily.

ancient greece

which civilization had citizens that had equal rights and were required by law to participate?

romanic republic

which civilization had citizens that participated in legislative assemblies where they were able to pass laws and elect senators to serve in the senate.

absolute monarchy in europe

which civilization had monarchs that centralized powers, leading to defined borders and united populations.

feudal europe

which civilization had people that gave up rights and powers to lords in exchange for their livelihood and protection.