The phrase “American Experiment” denotes the determination of English colonies who participate in unprecedented and valiant efforts to advance their society on the principles of self-governance, liberty, and justice. During the early settlers and the Founding Fathers’ pursuit of establishing both a society and a governing document – outlining their rationale, pieces of legislation, and their imagined federal government’s jurisdictions – they incorporated an objective to “form a more perfect union” (U.S. Const. pmbl.). Throughout American history, vanguards of social advancement progressed the United States with the endeavors to achieve equality, while conversely, the nation has witnessed agents of injustice attempting to impede the remedy of historical transgressions. These injustices include any action that seeks to limit civil liberties to all citizens of the United States; agents of injustice proactively worked to impede the fundamental principles of American democracy to reach all individuals living in the imagined government of centuries prior. This fluctuation between egalitarianism and elitism naturally occurs as a consequence of the institutional framework that preserves a governing majority of any political ideology. 

From the nation’s infancy, contention has been the hallmark of American Democracy. The transformation of American politics has witnessed the triumph of political adversity in order to advance equality. Not even a century old, some of the nation’s most prominent political figures exhibited contrasting perspectives of institutional frameworks regarding congressional representation. Throughout vital discourse, political proponents unified to embrace The Great Compromise which attempted to answer how representation in an elective government could accurately represent its constituents, as equally as possible. The Senate permits two legislators to represent their state, whereas the House of Representatives permits a variety of legislators from each state as the House is based on population. Nonetheless, in contemporary times, political party polarization has been detrimental to the preservation of civil liberties of protected classes, obstructing politicians from engaging in essential discourse, and manufacturing ideal storylines to score political points. The accumulation of the United States’ internal issues of political polarization derives from the type of governance desired from citizens. 

While the United States Congress highlights the variation of political ideologies across the nation, they are categorized within the limits of the Democratic or Republican Parties. Consequently, both political parties campaign on distinguishable sets of morals and economic principles. Alexis de Tocqueville, a French philosopher and historian, would concur that regardless of party, “unlimited power is in itself a bad and dangerous thing; human beings are not competent to exercise it with discretion” (Tocqueville 302). Manufacturing a system with supreme authority controlled by mankind promotes a flawed governance – unyielding, irrepressible, and ineffective. The institutional framework of governance manifests instability as the inherent unpredictability of human behavior and political turmoil are flaws that undermine an institution’s objectives and power. Any institution is subject to error, and Tocqueville projected his concerns for the United States Congress as “the legislature is, of all political institutions, the one which is most easily swayed by the wishes of the majority” (Tocqueville 295). The legislative branch naturally facilitates the formation of governing majorities in both chambers; unfortunately, a simple majority is all that is required to attain control. Accordingly, political factions advance their political agenda through the implementation of tactical maneuvers demonstrated through strategic committee assignments or through the modification of rules that govern the chambers to preserve the majority in their favor. 

The preservation of a governing majority culminates in a political notion referred to as tyranny of the majority: the prevalent governing coalition governs discriminately to expedite policies to favor themselves or to revoke fundamental liberties from the minority. Tocqueville anticipated that a tyrannical majority could accumulate within the legislative branch warning that “the quantity of legislators is more important than their quality” (Tocqueville 296). Unfortunately, recent trends show that the goal of obtaining a governing majority leads voters to elect officials while neglecting their character and moral values, which is due to the contribution of citizens who want their political party to have control. Logically, a governing majority implicates the general population’s preference of governance, thus “the moral power of the majority is founded upon yet another principle, which is, that the interests of the many are to be preferred to those of the few” (Tocqueville 297). The dominant political faction may disregard the perspectives of the marginalized as there is no incentive to acknowledge the minority. A governing majority can corrupt the political system as legislators can be elected to contribute in the formation of a majority within a chamber to obtain power. Accordingly, the majority’s justification of malicious acts of injustice accounts for the representation of their constituents’ desires as they were elected to highlight their concerns on a federal stage. For instance, Former President Barack Obama appointed Merrick Garland to become the next Associate Supreme Court Justice during an election year which had a Republican-led Senate. Republicans blocked the appointment claiming the vacant judicial seat should be appointed by the next president, as they justified their blockade saying citizens should contribute to the determination of the next Associate Justice. Conversely, four years later during an election year, Former President Donald Trump appointed Amy Coney Barrett and a Republican-led Senate rapidly approved her appointment within a month. This hypocritical and unjust double standard demonstrates the cycle of endless political attacks from both sides of the aisle manufacturing a desire of obtaining a majority in both chambers. A tyrannical majority is diametrically opposed to fundamental principles of democracy, equity, and autonomy. 

Emerging from the lurking shadows, the daunting presence of ignorance detrimentally halts the progression towards justice and liberty, thus becoming an existential threat to American democracy. The illustration of ignorance can be seen throughout Oedipus the King as it highlights Oedipus, the King of Thebes, uncovering nerve-racking truths about his own life: he unknowingly murdered his father, Laius, and married his mother, Jocasta, fulfilling a prophecy he had been trying to escape. Oedipus disregarded the visions proclaimed by Tiresias and the concerns from a variety of his colleagues insisting that the prophecy did not implicate him. Creon, Oedipus’ brother-in-law, says, “The riddling Sphinx induced us to neglect / mysterious crimes and rather seek solution / of troubles at our feet” (Lattimore 130-132). Creon attempts to prompt Oedipus into realization, urging him to reconcile with the historical fulfillment of the prophecy rather than persisting in a fallacious narrative of non-compliance. Oedipus’ actions serve as a testament to the lengths to which individuals are prepared to embrace ignorance in order to perpetuate their stories. Wilful blindness obstructs progress, fosters prejudice, perpetuates inequalities, and undermines humanity. 

 Furthermore, traditional precepts emanate from ignorance, thereby upholding conservative ideology and diminishing civil liberties. For instance, the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) introduced in the early 1920s aimed for gender equality which passed both chambers, anticipating approval from three-fourths of the states. In the midst of the 1970s, Phyllis Schlafly, a conservative activist, successfully led a traditionalist campaign which impeded the implication of the ERA as “[she] argued that the measure would lead to gender-neutral bathrooms, same-sex marriage, and woman in military combat” (Cohen and Codrington). The ratification of the ERA was a source of concern for Schlafly as the amendment would rectify the institutionalized chauvinism ingrained in American history that delayed recognizing civil liberties for females. Schlafly’s fallacious perspective pioneered the process of politicizing gender equality, thereby manufacturing “significant repercussions” poised to imperil the core morals held by Republicans. From the inception of gender equality to the present era, the trajectory of women’s rights remains persistently obstructed by religiously motivated misogynistic perspectives, consequently presenting continuous impediment to equality. Moreover, ignorance leads to the infringement of minorities’ rights, exacerbates political polarization, and erosion of democratic values.

The preservation of an egalitarian governance is contingent upon civil disobedience. Ethical nonconformity confronts the imposition of the government as resistance establishes a framework of accountability. Culpability occupies a pivotal function in scrutinizing authority and ensuring the alignment of the interest of the people with governmental activity. Socphocles’s Antigone, a Greek tragedy, encapsulates the conflict between individual morality and state authority as Antigone defies King Creon’s decree to honor her brother’s death, Polynices (Lattimore). The substantial motif of resistance exemplifies the challenge of oppressive structures and continuous journey of upholding ethical values against authoritarian governance . Unfortunately, Creon reprimanded Antigone by confining her in a cave where she would later commit suicide. Antigone’s rebellion and death illustrates the importance of an endless pursuit for justice. A politically transformative movement that had a pivotal role in rectifying historical wrongs was the Civil Rights Movement. The conception of the movement originated from the aspiration of people of color demanding the federal government to terminate immoral practices of segregation, safeguard voting rights, and enshrine civil protection from discrimination. The trajectory towards rectifying inequities necessitates continual navigation by the public, as transformative actions demand civil engagement in confronting systemic oppressions. Therefore, the civic body has an underlying obligation to assert their beliefs, advocate for political transparency, and uphold the principles of justice. 

There are multifaceted approaches to preserve the integrity of justice, however, the evolutionary trajectory of justice has been predicated on media as it has been a catalyst for social movements. The unyielding sanctity of the press facilitates the trajectory of justice as it operates irrespective of social standing, government influence, and pursues the revelation of objective truths. For instance, the Pentagon Papers “[revealed] how the government used secrecy to deceive the American people about the nation’s disastrous role in the [Vietnam] War” (Caplan). The calculated manipulation of the truth orchestrated by the federal government, tailored to bolster their narrative and warrant the distressing extent of deaths, became apparent from the publication of numerous outlets, including The New York Times. After the publication, the federal government sued these journalistic organizations as they were allegedly in violation of the Espionage Act of 1917, regarding the exposure of privileged information to foreign adversaries. The unprecedented verdict rendered by the Supreme Court favoring these press institutions empowered media platforms as paramount instruments for unveiling factual accuracy and redirecting the trajectory towards a justice-centric path. Historian Stanley I. Kulter concurs, stating that  “[this was] the people’s paladin against official wrongdoing” (Caplan). Similarly, King Creon adopts a traditionalist form of governance: when he was questioned by Haemon, his son, Creon contended that tradition should be the cornerstone of governance. Creon possessed absolute sovereignty, and by his own discretion he could overturn precedents. The federal government and King Creon fell short in amending their transgressions within the framework of their governance. Various avenues exist to attain justice, and the principle of justice remains immutable, transcending authority and the constraints of time. The progression of technology has facilitated the documentation and dissemination of injustice through media platforms. To provide a concrete instance, the fatal excessive force demonstrated by officers against George Floyd (which unfortunately led to his passing) was captured through video recording and provoked nationwide protests insisting on the resignation and arrest of the officers. Equally important, journalistic organizations and technology have become indispensable instruments to combat injustice and authority.

The rich tapestry of American history is a narrative woven with the alternating threads of the pursuit of equality and the encroachment of injustice. Tocqueville’s insights on the dangers of a tyrannical majority resonate deeply, underscoring the critical importance of instating safeguards within democratic institutions. This ensures that the rights and liberties of the minority are not trampled upon by the whims of the majority, a concern that remains alarmingly relevant in contemporary times marked by political polarization and the exploitation of legislative processes to consolidate unchecked power and undermine civil liberties. Additionally, drawing upon the allegorical insights from the Greek tragedy of Oedipus the King highlights how ignorance, when willfully embraced, can lead individuals to a perilous abyss of self-deception. Oedipus’s refusal to acknowledge the truth serves as a stark reminder of the lengths to which people are willing to go to perpetuate their own narratives, even when they perpetuate prejudice, inequality, and hinder societal progress. In the face of existential threats emanating from a tyrannical majority and the persistence of societal ignorance is contingent upon unwavering devotion towards justice, as justice is imperative in order to safeguard the sanctity of the democratic system. 

Works Cited

Caplan, Lincoln. “The Pentagon Papers Case Today.” Harvard Law School, 13 Aug. 2022. 

Cohen, Alex, and Wilfred Codrington. “The Equal Rights Amendment Explained.” Brennan Center for Justice, 9 Oct. 2019.

Sophocles. Sophocles I: Antigone. Oedipus the King. Oedipus at Colonus. Edited by David Greene and Richard  Lattimore. University of Chicago Press, 2013.

Tocqueville, Alexis de. Democracy in America. Translated by Henry Reeve, Bantam Classic, 2004.