The opening lines of the Mayflower Compact read: “Having undertaken, for the glory of God, and advancement of the Christian fait
h and honor of our King and Country, a voyage to plant the first colony in the northern parts of Virginia, do by these presents solemnly and mutually in the presence of God, and one of another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil body politic…” This passage best exemplifies which Enlightenment political concept?
Select one:
A. a social contract
B. natural law
C. limited government
D. separation of powers
This passage best exemplifies the concept of a social contract.
Answer: Option A
<u>Explanation
:</u>
Mayflower Compact was a covenant entered into by the English settlers providing for the rules of self-government when they made their journey to the New World by ship named as Mayflower. This compact was signed by 41 male colonists which included two servants on the 11th November, 1620.
This covenant had laid the cornerstone for the U.S. Constitution. This compact essentially enshrines the theory of social contract which implies that there is either hypothetical or actual contract between the subjects and the ruler and also enumerates the rights as well as duties of every party to the contract.
Marbury v. Madison is the cornerstone of judicial review. It set precedent because it held the Judiciary Act of 1789 enabling Marbury to come before the Supreme Court. This set in motion the principle of judicial review, the ability, and power to declare a law unconstitutional.
