civic virtue

Examples of civic virtue in the following topics:

• The Soul of a Republic

  • Eighteenth century republicanism in the United States prioritized political participation, commitment to the common good, and individual virtue.
  • Virtue was of the utmost importance for citizens and representatives.
  • Civic virtue became a matter of public interest and discussion during the 18th century, in part because of the American Revolutionary War.
  • In a republic, however, people must be persuaded to submit their own interests to the government, and this voluntary submission constituted the 18th century's notion of civic virtue.
  • Independently wealthy men committed to liberty and property rights were considered most likely to possess sufficient civic virtue to safeguard a republic from the dangers of corruption.

• American Republicanism

  • Drawing from colonial experience, British political liberties, classical Roman and Greek culture, and various notions of civic virtue, intellectuals and leaders devised a political theory known as "American republicanism".
  • Virtue was of the utmost importance for citizens and representatives, and a virtuous citizen was one that ignored monetary compensation and made a commitment to resist and eradicate corruption.
  • In the 1790s, during the years of the early United States Republic, these figures would vehemently disagree with each other not only over how republicanism should be politically structured (embodied by the struggle between Federalists and Anti-Federalists over the ratification of the Constitution), but also, over various definitions of proper civic virtue.
  • Republican virtue, Federalists argued, was found in commerce, because commercial ties created the national strength and wealth necessary to safeguard liberties.

• The Adams Presidency

  • As the second president to hold office, Federalist John Adams followed Washington's example in stressing civic virtue and republican values.

• The Patriots

  • The philosophy of republicanism entailed a rejection of monarchy and aristocracy and emphasized civic virtue.

• Financial Strains

  • The American Revolution (1775–1783) brought a dedication to the unalienable rights of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness," emphasizing individual liberty and economic entrepreneurship, and a commitment to the political values of republicanism, such as civic virtue and promotion of the general welfare.

• Domestic Turmoil During the Adams Presidency

  • President Adams, the second President of the United States, followed Washington's lead in using the presidency to exemplify Federalist republican values and civic virtue.

• The Julio-Claudians

  • Augustus notably negotiated peace with the Parthians and enacted civic and moral legislation to promote a return to Republican morals and ideals of Roman virtue.

• Democracy v. Republicanism

  • Republicanism is the political values system that has been a major part of American civic thought since the American Revolution.
  • It stresses liberty and inalienable rights as central values, makes the people as a whole sovereign, rejects inherited political power, expects citizens to be independent in their performance of civic duties, and vilifies corruption.
  • Virtue was of the utmost importance for citizens and representatives.

• The Changed Role of Women

  • Republicanism also affected a wife’s relationship with her husband, with virtues such as love and affection becoming more essential to the ideal marital relationship than obedience and subservience.
  • Due to the increased emphasis placed on women’s civic duties within the home, the environment was also more favorable to women’s participation in politics as well as the further education of women.

• Women in the Republic

  • This status was especially clear in the lack of legal rights for married women; the law did not recognize wives' independence in economic, political, or civic matters in the 18th century.
  • Republicanism assumed that a successful republic rested on the virtue of its citizens, and required intelligent and self-disciplined citizens to form the core of the new republic.