What Does the "Tyranny of the Majority" Mean? Why Did

question 11

Essay

What does the "tyranny of the majority" mean? Why did James Madison consider it a potential problem? How does that fit with a republic based on majority rule? What did the framers of the Constitution ultimately do to prevent majority tyranny and do you believe it has been effective?

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Definitions:

Diseconomies of Scope

The phenomenon where a company’s costs increase as it produces more varied types of products or services, due to inefficiencies.

Returns to Scale

The rate at which output increases as inputs are increased proportionately.

Economies of Scope

Cost advantages companies experience when they increase the variety of products produced, as opposed to increasing the volume of a single product (economies of scale).

Joint Cost Curve

Refers to a graph showing the costs shared by products in the process of being produced together up to a split-off point.