Question

Read the excerpt from the Iroquois Constitution. All Lords of the Five Nations Confederacy must be honest in all things. . . . It shall be a serious wrong for anyone to lead a Lord into trivial affairs, for the people must ever hold their Lords high in estimation out of respect to their honorable positions. What is the main idea of this excerpt? Members of the Five Nations Confederacy should know how to show respect to their Lords. The Lords of the Five Nations Confederacy hold high-ranking positions. The people of the Five Nations Confederacy deserve respect and should be held in high esteem. The Lords of the Five Nations Confederacy should act honorably and be revered.

Answer 1

The correct answer is The Lords of the Five Nations Confederacy should act honorably and be revered.

Indeed, the first injunction is addressed to the Lords, and it clearly points them towards acting honorably as Lords of the Iroquois Confederation. The second injunction is addressed to their constituency, and it directs them to only submit important matters to these Lords and to respect them because of their positions. What this entails is that “trivial matters” are handled by another body, hinting at a possible separation of powers. It also establishes the principle of respect to the ethics and importance of the position held by the Lords.