Dbq Thomas Jefferson Analysis

Thomas Jefferson focuses instead on the life and political career of Jefferson, his personal ideologies, and his actions while in office. Appleby seems especially interested in how his views were alike and divergent from the opinions of his contemporaries. Though many historians dismiss the claim, she regards Jefferson’s description of his election as “real a revolution in

Thomas Jefferson once wrote that all men were created equal; however, he owned and sold slaves for profit. Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence, ran for election in 1800 and started the Jeffersonian Revolution with his election. Jefferson was a Republican who won the office from the previous Federalist president, John Adams. With his fresh presidency, Jefferson sought out to further limit the Federal Governments power and to give more democracy to the people. Jefferson believed in many things as a Republican and as a human, but his life-time and presidency oftentimes portrayed the opposite of his founding beliefs. These contradictions that Jefferson illustrated during his years showed a representation of not only American history, but even what it means to be human.

1. Jefferson is considered one of America's greatest writers. His inaugural address was filled with beautifully constructed thoughts, well expressed. Several phrases are still quoted today: "entangling alliances"; "every difference of opinion is not a difference of principle"; and "we are all Republicans, we are all Federalists." Consider the historical context of each of these three phrases and discuss the meanings behind them.

Thomas Jefferson was the third American President. Due to the fact that he was such an early President, he influenced our political system greatly, both in the short and long term with his seemingly quiet approach to congressional matters. During his presidency, many things happened that changed the United States as we know it. He coordinated the Louisiana Purchase, assisted in implementing the twelfth amendment, formed the character of the modern American President, and cut the U.S.’s war debt by a third.

Thomas Jefferson once said, “When the people fear the government there is tyranny, when the government fears the people there is liberty.” Thomas Jefferson believed the best government was the one that governs the least . Jefferson stressed how a small government with limited powers is most likely to leave the people alone and have them enjoy the Blessings of Liberty. Furthermore, Thomas Jefferson was a man who had numerous accomplishments in his life. He was the author of the Declaration of Independence, author of the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom, founder of the University of Virginia, and the third President of the United States. His strict interpretation of the Constitution was due to his belief that the charter was designed to provide the people with a say in governmental affairs. Mr. Jefferson won the approval from the working class because he fought for them and not the powerful interests of the wealthy. Although Jefferson was a vocal and active leader in the rights of states, his recommendation of the Embargo Act and his support of the Non-Intercourse act resulted in his failure as the Commander In Chief.

In the years prior to Thomas Jefferson's presidency, he was a very vocal critic of a centralized federal government and he was an avid follower of the constitution, yet once he became Commander in Chief he changed his tune towards these issues. The three largest contradictions that stand out amongst his actions were his war with the Barbary pirates, using restrictive economic policies to achieve his goals, and his acquiring of Louisiana. Although these contradictions were for the good of the country, he still went against the convictions that got him elected.

Thomas Jefferson was elected in the 1800’s as the President of United States. During the years of being a president, Thomas Jefferson executed the job very well. He was a great leader for his accomplishments and his philosophies that affected politically as well in other ways; he also showed a lot of affection against slavery. Firstly, Thomas Jefferson was an opponent of slavery. According to research, Thomas Jefferson had said slavery was “moral depravity and hideous blot” (Thomas Jefferson and Slavery Monticello).

Thomas Jefferson composed Notes on the State of Virginia in 1781 during the time of political uncertainty that the United States faced after it declared independence and each state operated its own unique government under the Articles of Confederation. The notes were composed as the answers to a series of questions posed by a “foreigner of distinction” who was residing in Virginia. As Jefferson has a clear bias towards Virginia, it can be concluded that he took offense to the questions posed which likely undermined the value of the state and possibly the country. Jefferson’s status as a notable, wealthy, white man makes his opinions in regard to freedom, slavery, race, and resources the accepted answers to whatever questions had been presented.

In the history of America, Thomas Jefferson, the Secretary of State, and Hamilton, the Secretary of the Treasury, were two of the greatest leaders of our country. Although they both lead the country, that's where the similarities end as they had opposing views on everything. Jefferson was a republican while Hamilton was a federalist. Jefferson had been opposed to all of Hamilton's ideas, such as his financial plan, his interpretation of the powers of the government, his foreign policy, and his vision for the future of America. Jefferson was against Hamilton's views because his financial plan would ultimately destroy democracy in America, his interpretation of the powers of

Thomas Jefferson's ideals and beliefs were derived from a deep regard for life, liberty, and freedom. His concept of individual freedoms strongly disagreed with the notion of a "guided republic" which he believed concentrated a great deal unchecked power among a few people. This could have the potential of tyrannical government that might suppress personal freedoms of any kind especially those of religion, which Jefferson feels very strongly felt should be protected. After fighting hard to rid America of British domination, Jefferson was determined to create a government that was responsible to, and derived its powers from, a free people. As the writer of the Declaration of Independence and the Virginia Statute for

Throughout the period of 1790 to 1825, Thomas Jefferson and his party of Republicans often had differing ideals than Alexander Hamilton and the Federalists. During this time, Federalists had a desire for a strong central government and trade rights. Jefferson and his Republicans, on the other hand, were strong advocates for state power against the tyrannical central government. As a prominent politician, Jefferson spoke out against Hamilton ideas such as a national bank; when Jefferson became president, however, some of his views change and seem to reflect those of Hamilton.

Thomas Jefferson was an early American politician, who was well-known for his actions during his presidency. He was labeled as a Democratic-Republican, meaning he favored stronger rights of individual states, rather than a central government with a lot of power. That is, at least in the years prior to his presidency. After he was elected, however, his convictions totally changed. During his presidency, three major events; his war with the Barbary Pirates, his restrictive economic policies, and the Louisiana Purchase, all directly contradicted the beliefs of himself and other Democratic-Republicans.

The Jeffersonian Democracy, name after Thomas Jefferson, favored a small, limited federal government that did not interfere with the individual state rulings. Thomas Jefferson also opposed the idea of a national bank. He preferred to limit the control of government as much as possible. This group is also known as the Democratic-Republican party. Jefferson did not like to idea of an industrialized economic plan. He strongly believed in the expansion of agriculture. Therefore, he was not against slavery. The majority of Jefferson's supporters were land owners and farmers because they approved of his idea to expand agriculture. Due to the fact the Federalist were not on common ground, the election of Thomas Jefferson by the Democratic-Republic

“If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be.” These words from Thomas Jefferson provide insight into a man who was a complicated, dynamic character in the founding of the young United States. Every president has a moment or event that defines his path in history. Though it was a test for him and his administration, the Barbary Wars proved Thomas Jefferson to be a strong president in his handling of foreign affairs.

He was afraid that the constitution gave too much power to the central government. Jefferson didn’t trust the government, saying “Experience hath shown that even under the best forms of government those entrusted with power have in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into Tyranny” (Doc. C). Alexander Hamilton saw that the power belonged to the government and wealthy men. He thought that in order for the nation to prosper there had to be a strong government. Hamilton didn’t trust the people to make decisions, saying “The people are turbulent and changing, they seldom judge or determine right...can a democratic assembly who annually revolve in the mass of the people be supposed steadily to pursue the public good”? and “Men often oppose a thing merely because they have had no agency in planning it or because it may have been planned by those whom they dislike” (Doc. F).!!Agriculture and the people meant a lot to Jefferson when it came to the economy. He had the Democratic-Republican view that our future was in the farmers. Based on the past experiences with Britain, Jefferson learned to not trust the federal government all the way.