The federalists and the anti-federalists were two movements in the late eighteenth century. The key similarity between them is that both groups were prominent at the times of change for the young United States. Both movements had strong views regarding the necessity of the federal government and valued unity to spread their ideas (Cornell 21). Additionally, the representatives of both movements tried to influence society’s perceptions of the best approach to constitutional communication (Cornell 21). However, the details of their views regarding government structures and the philosophy of power distribution were drastically different and almost mutually exclusive.
The differences between the movements range from philosophical views to the social characteristics of members. The federalist movement was more attractive for wealthier individuals, viewed power centralization as an opportunity to promote economic growth, and valued individual expertise and rationalist thought (Gatica 131). The anti-federalists viewed the opponents’ values as the sources of risk for the entire country and placed emphasis on localism and the preservation of each state’s autonomy (Gatica 135). Their perspectives on elitism were also antipodal: the federalists’ idea of the ruler was closer to Plato’s “perfect” philosopher king (Gatica 132). The anti-federalists did not tolerate inequality in access to knowledge and insisted on the need for equitable/fair relationships between common people and their official representatives (Gatica 135). This aspect of the disagreement between them had implications for their views on class-based differences in the right to be called virtuous and common citizens’ right to designate representatives. As per anti-federalist thought, the virtue resided in common people, thus granting them access to participation in political processes (Gatica 135). Their opponents seemed to be positive about the monopoly on virtue and decision-making power of the ruling class.
Works Cited
Cornell, Saul. “Constitutional Meaning and Semantic Instability: Federalists and Anti-Federalists on the Nature of Constitutional Language.” American Journal of Legal History, vol. 56, no. 1, 2016, pp. 21-28.
Gatica, Obed Frausto. “Federalist and Anti-Federalist: Two Divergent Concepts of Politics.” Studia Philosophica Wratislaviensia, vol. 14, no. 1, 2019, pp. 129-143.