Campus
John Marshall Project Seminar Session
Boston College undergraduate students discuss issues of Freedom of the Press, Political Parties, and Political Elections throughout the course of the semester.
The John Marshall Project, housed in the Department of Political Science at Boston College, promotes the study of the citizenship and statesmanship needed by a democratic and constitutional republic. John Marshall, the “great Chief Justice” (1803-35), was especially concerned with civic education of the young, and his judicious statesmanship stands as a model from which we today can benefit.
Students will consider questions like:
What does it mean to be a member of a political party in America when public opinion is infinitely fragmented? Do stronger parties suggest stronger democracy? Or, alternatively, is the “despotism” of political parties an obstacle to “real” democracy? Do political parties extend or restrict the will of the people?
Is Americans’ feverish agitation about political elections and obsession with politics a virtue or a vice? Is the presidential election a time of national crisis, or a celebration of democratic glory? If the latter, why don’t we feel like it is?