The Tyranny of the majority
Lani Guinier, in the excerpt from The Tyranny of the Majority, illustrates the "central theme of [her] academic writing" -- "not all rules lead to elemental fair play"(49). She discusses the importance of the consideration of the minority in a majority rules position, and provides solid alternatives to the tyrannical approach of a "win/lose" situation. While taking her audience into careful consideration, Guinier opens her piece by stating her "lifelong ambition:" "I have always wanted to be a civil rights lawyer"(49). Her statement as the first sentence in this piece gives the reader a sense of who she is and her purpose. As the "first African-American woman tenured professor in the Harvard Law School"(48), she composes an entirely logical argument while holding true to her initial passion: "voting rights, one of the long-standing initiatives of the civil rights movement"(48). She is a prominent author among law journals and written works concerning her purpose as a coalition builder, and appeals to both audiences, as well as students. Guinier is able to uphold a strong position attractive to both fields, while providing powerful personal evidence and documented quotes from a highly influential founding father: James Ma
" Through this elemental story, she is able to bring to life her central theme in writing with the supporting statement that when they do not encourage everyone to play, or when, over the long haul, they do not make the losers feel as good about the outcomes as the winners, they can seem as unfair as the milliner who makes the winning hat for her daughter. In the "principle of taking turns," animalistic tendencies are dulled as a sense of organization and civilization is brought forth. The girl who "won" was awarded by her mother as Guinier quickly resigned from the organization. Guinier continues to appeal to her audience as she entertains with another example in her argument, only this time she, with the help of her four year old son, develops the "principle of taking turns. Through pathos, ethos, and logos, she brings her audience a developed argument with credible evidence. With the "zero-sum" only the "winners" win and thus play the game of their choice. In the "positive-sum" situation, both groups of children get to play what they like, even if the "loser" does not get to play immediately or as many times. The majority is obviously only looking out for themselves as well when in participation because consideration of the minority is not taken into account. She tells a childhood story of her experience as a Brownie, and the rigged hatmaking contest that soiled her ideals as a proud wearer of her uniform, "which represented a commitment to good citizenship and good deeds"(49). Although the decision of playing the "majority's" music appears logical, it does not make up for the cultural differences and the prom dilemma was solved by two proms: one for the white kids, and one for the black kids. By considering the behavior of humans and animals in general, Guinier is able to take a firm stance in her carefully developed theories and plans. The "losers" get nothing out of the deal. With the "zero-sum" solution, "the numerically more powerful majority choice simply subsumes minority preferences"(50), while the true split in the vote is not shown. She has proven quite effectively that "'it is no fair' if a fixed, tyrannical majority excludes or alienates the minority"(54).
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Acceptance Essays
