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The Declaration of Independence was a product of Enlightenment philosophy and specifically of the theories of John Locke. Underlying assumptions of the Declaration include that government is a social contract, only valid with the explicit approval of the people who are governed but not lorded or ruled over. Jefferson recognized also that historical changes enable the emergence of new systems of governance and political culture: “in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another.” Grounded in reason and rational thought, the Declaration also lists reasons for “the separation” of the former colonies from the Crown. Locke’s writings demonstrate an “anti-authoritarian” streak, one that allowed him and other Enlightenment philosophers—and also the Founding Fathers—to take the great leap towards self-governance (Uzgalis, 2017, p. 1). John Locke’s affirmation of liberty, freedom, and equality continue to resonate in the American consciousness.
Locke’s Two Treatises on Human Government offer some of the clearest indications of how the English philosopher influenced Jefferson. In Locke’s First Treatise, the author claims that all humans are born free, and refutes the idea that monarchic rule is necessary...
In Locke’s Second Treatise, the author discusses two of the main principles that would make their way into the Declaration of Independence. One of those principles is the principle of positive rights: people have “inalienable rights” to “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness,” (Declaration of Independence). Those rights are inalienable in that they are nearly sacred in nature; they exist a priori. The government is subordinate to those rights but also has a duty to protect and affirm those rights. The second principle of Locke’s that found its way into the Declaration of Independence is that the government is a social contract. Government is not a small group of ruling elites exuding arbitrary power over others, but a group of people self-aware of their inalienable rights. The people can decide when and how the government should act, and what powers that government should have. In the Declaration, it is stated that government must have “the consent of the governed.”
Unlike the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence is written in universal language that does not specifically refer to the United States of America. The Declaration speaks about universal human rights and…
References
Declaration of Independence (1776). http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/document/
Kaiser, D. (2015). How the Declaration of Independence can still change the world. Time. 2 July, 2015. http://time.com/3934144/declaration-of-independence-not-outdated/
Uzgalis, W. (2017). The influence of John Locke’s works. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/locke/influence.html
Due to these acts, and because of the many others that followed, the colonies proclaimed their independence. On July 2 the Philadelphia Convention had its motion of independence implemented. The state's representatives wanted to emphasize their decision of breaking from the Mother Country, so they presented the Declaration of Independence. Thomas Jefferson was the one who drafted this act. His ideas were not new; he was inspired in his political
As many historians admit, his skills in argument and rhetoric were instrumental in getting the Declaration accepted by the American people. As mentioned, this was not an easy task, as there were many who were opposed and some leaders even threatened that "...their states would secede from the fragile union if independence were declared. Leaders of the Congress, such as Adams, risked being executed as traitors to the Crown"
History Of Zionism Zionism is the political movement that arose in Europe in the late 19th century with the aim of creating a Jewish state in Palestine. It asserted that the Jewish people were a separate nation and were entitled to have a country of their own and succeeded in its objective with the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948. Since then, the Zionist movement has concentrated on strengthening Israel
This is not always the case. Some may be educated and economically well off, within particular fundamentalist sects, but use an idealistic vision of the past to provide a solution to what they see is lacking in the contemporary world. This was true of the Muslim Brotherhood of 1929, which used religion as part of its ideology of colonial resistance -- and is also true of many of the
Declaration of Independence which was drafted by Thomas Jefferson between June 11 and June 28 in 1776 is one of the most cherished symbols of liberty of the nation as well as the most enduring monument of Jefferson. In unforgettable and exalted phrases, convictions are expressed in the heats and minds of people of America by Jefferson. It was not a new political philosophy of the Declaration, John Locke and
Declaration of Independence The Theory of Government presented in the Declaration The author of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson was greatly influenced by the political thoughts of the 17th century English philosopher John Locke and other thinkers of the European Age of Enlightenment. The theory of government presented in the Declaration is largely based on the political philosophy of Natural Rights that maintains that each individual enters a society with certain