Who's Vision Did America Follow?

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America has gone through an incredible journey to be the country it is today. Whether it was discovering new territories, developing new connections between regions, or acquiring knowledge to benefit the land, America has grown into a prosperous country with significant ideals that were developed by its founding fathers. Two of the country’s founding fathers were Thomas Jefferson and John Quincy Adams. Though both had some differing visions for America, the country was founded on a combination of both of their insights and wisdom.
Thomas Jefferson belonged the the Republican Party, while John Q. Adams belonged to the Federalist Party. Surprisingly enough, Jefferson and Adams were good friends before their differing political stands drove them apart. Jefferson found himself in the Republican Party because he shared their views, particularly their dislike of the federal government. Jefferson believed that “there was in every nation a natural aristocracy of the most talented men that would naturally rise up in a free society.”1 Because of this, he believed that power should be divided among the states instead of being centered in the federal government. In contrast, Adams believed the exact opposite. He stood for a strong federal government because he thought it was essential to the new country. He did not believe in Jefferson’s view of the “aristocracy rule” because he thought that system would become corrupt. Adams felt that having a government composed of a strong executive branch along with checks and balances “were necessary to fight the inevitable corruptions that comes with political power.”2 By having checks and balances, one person would not be more powerful than the other. In this way, Adams believed that the government wo...

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...d the importance of freedom were based on both Jefferson and Adams’ vision for the country.

Works Cited

Adams, John. Thoughts on Government. 1776.
Cothran, Boyd. "The Educational Thought of John Adams." Accessed April 4, 2014. http://www.aap.berkeley.edu/journals/2003Journal/BCothran.html. Jefferson, Thomas, and Adams, John. Declaration of Independence. Philadelphia: 1776.
Lopez, Lopez. "The Friendship of Thomas Jefferson and John and Abigail Adams." Last modified October 2, 2010. Accessed April 4, 2014. http://www.everydaycitizen.com/2010/10/the_friendship_of_thomas_jeffe.html. "Monticello.org." Accessed April 4, 2014. http://www.monticello.org/site/jefferson/john-adams.
Segarra, Elena. "www.heritage.org." Last modified April 14, 2013. Accessed April 4, 2014. http://blog.heritage.org/2013/04/14/18th-century-advice-thomas-jefferson-on-
education-reform/.

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