The Federalist Articles: Numbers 10 and 51

No. 10
"The instability, injustice, and confusion introduced into the public councils, have, in truth, been the mortal diseases under which popular governments have everywhere perished; as they continue to be the favorite and fruitful topics from which the adversaries to liberty derive their most specious declamations."
In this article, the authors are claiming that the reason democracies and republics have failed in in the past is because of this "instability, injustice, and confusion" that stem from the public councils. The article goes on the explain how the republic in America will work to counteract these "mortal diseases". This seems to me a vital step in the formation of a strong and relatively centralized government: addressing the mistakes that have arisen with the same form of government before.


"In the extent and proper structure of the Union, therefore, we behold a republican remedy for the diseases most incident to republican government. And according to the degree of pleasure and pride we feel in being republicans, ought to be our zeal in cherishing the spirit and supporting the character of Federalists."
This "republican remedy" seems to be balance in numbers of representatives and fair elections of these representatives. I recognize this as the vague beginnings of the electoral college system, with the masses electing representatives and the representatives voting for legislation in the popular interest of those from their correlating state. In the final words of the article, it states that Americans should support the creation of a strong government and those who create it.


No. 51 
"In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself."
The article largely discusses the idea of balance and check of powers between the different branches of American central government. In this passage, it is pointed out the difficulty in conceiving a system of governmental representation that both controls the people and controls itself. The American government does this by creating branches with check each others power and ensure the proper balance is maintained, therefore controlling itself, while still being strong enough to control the masses.

"The second method will be exemplified in the federal republic of the United States. Whilst all authority in it will be derived from and dependent on the society, the society itself will be broken into so many parts, interests, and classes of citizens, that the rights of individuals, or of the minority, will be in little danger from interested combinations of the majority."
This passage supposes that the variety in minority groups will be so great that they will be safe from the direct influence of the majority. This is a more abstract concept, but I feel like what it is trying to accomplish is that there is no single minority which the majority could influence r oppress, but rather a complete stratification of social interests, which protects individuals' right to individual opinion.