Final answer:
The first English colonies in America were influenced by earlier ideas about democracy and government, such as the concept of self-government and representative government.
Step-by-step explanation:
The first English colonies in America were shaded by earlier ideas about democracy and government in several ways.
- First, the British government allowed for a degree of self-government in the colonies. For example, laws were made by Parliament and property-owning males were allowed to vote for representatives to Parliament. This introduced the concept of representative government to the American colonists.
- Second, the American colonies had been practicing limited forms of self-government since the early 1600s. The colonies developed skills to govern themselves due to the great distance from Britain, which resulted in less control and enforcement of British policies.
- Lastly, the desire to limit the power of government and govern themselves was ingrained in the belief system of many colonists. They believed in the importance of individual liberties and had experienced self-government in the colonies, which led them to resist when they felt that their longstanding tradition of self-government was being threatened by the actions of Parliament and the King.