This concept concerns Madison's theory of faction control in democratic political theory, as articulated in Federalist No. 10: since the causes of faction cannot be eliminated without destroying liberty, a well-designed republic must instead control faction's effects by extending the sphere of the polity to multiply the number of competing interests (crosscutting cleavages), making it harder for any single majority faction to form and oppress a minority. This argument for an extended republic is paired with an institutional theory of separated and checked powers — bicameralism, federalism, supermajority requirements, and a bill of rights — designed to prevent tyranny even where social pluralism alone is insufficient, situating Madison's argument within the broader tradition of democratic theory's response to the classical critique (Plato, Tocqueville) that democracy tends toward majority tyranny.
This concept concerns Madison's theory of faction control in democratic political theory, as articulated in Federalist No. 10: since the causes of faction cannot be eliminated without destroying libe…