Essay About Freedom

America is the universal symbol of freedom. But is it really free? Does the history of the United States stay true to the ideas of our forefathers? Or has the definition been altered to fit American policies? Has freedom defined America? Or has America defined freedom? I believe America was at first defined by freedom, then after time, America defined freedom, altering the definition to fit the niche it fits in, but still keeping key components so it still seems to be staying true to the ideas of America’s founding fathers.

The American Civil War claimed the lives of over 700,000 people. The war was fought from 1861-1865. The results of the war were described as; a union victory, abolishment of slavery, territorial integrity preserved and the destruction and dissolution of the Confederate States. The twelve years that followed were called the Reconstruction Era, 1865-1877. The purpose of the Reconstruction Era was to restore National Unity, strengthen the government, and guarantee rights to freed slaves. The reality of reconstruction though was; violence (260,000 dead), newly freed slaves suffered the most, and Lincoln's hopes of trust and rededication to peace were lost when he was assassinated on April 15th, 1865. It is these realities of the Reconstruction Era and beyond that this paper will address and how those realities affected the newly freed slaves. Life in post-bellum America for African - Americans was violent and filled with fear because of white supremacy, lynching, and the brutal mutilations of blacks.

What do you think of when you hear the word “freedom”? America was made on the foundations of liberty and freedom. We are pioneers, who fought for the separation of England to be our own country. To be without strict laws and restrictions so we could prosper and become a country of freedom and pride. All the soldiers from now that protect us from terrorist organizations to patriots that broke the English rule over the colonies. America has witnessed many deaths and losses but has become the greatest and most feared country on the face of the Earth.

What does freedom mean to me? I think that everyone should have access to higher education because being informed is key to keeping our freedom. .Ignorance to the policies of our government and indifference leads to losing freedoms. If our legislators in Congress pass laws that restrict our rights, we need to be informed. Our voting rights are very important because we need to elect officials that work for the people and not large corporations.

The freedom to make choices is important when we consider the idea of individuality. The freedoms we have make us unique from every other person. We can choose to stand out or coward with fear. Brave New World shows the citizens in the World State to be happy. They are very sexually active, doing drugs, watching movies, and playing games. If someone wants to live that life, as maintained in Huxley’s book, then it is their freedom of choice to do so even if it isn’t the right thing. We need to be able to learn from our bad choices in life. Happiness is a choice and you can surround yourself around positive things in life or choose

Both before and after legalized slavery, blacks imagined having the right to education, the right to own land, to vote, to marry, to be respected citizens and live freely in the United States among the other freedoms that were automatically granted to whites when they were born. Freedom is defined as, “The power or right to act, speak or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint.” The 13th Amendment technically freed the slaves, but for a slave in 1864, African American’s vision of freedom was limited because they had been seen as property for such a long time. Slaves didn 't know what was out there and there were many whites against this new freedom they had just received. Although, they were aware that they weren 't equal to whites at the time, they didn 't completely know what freedom could really mean. As time went on they started to see what came with freedom and they began to demand what they deserved. The country was beginning to reconstruct and things were looking up for blacks.

The American Ideological Consensus is that “…the American people have shared much of the same ideals, the same basic principles, and the same patterns of belief” (McClenaghan 104). When America filled itself with ideologically homogenous people, their beliefs started to define our nation and became American identities. If asked what they think of America, peoples of other nations would say that the roads are made of glass, opportunity is in the air, and civil rights are plentiful. These accounts maybe accentuated; however, the underlying message is that the American people have more freedoms then the peoples of other nations do. The most widely known American identity is freedom, and even though that American identity has been tried and

Awakening or to awake means “to wake up; to be or make alert or watchful” (Webster 23). This is what Edna Pontellier experienced in The Awakening.

I choose Freedom, why? Because freedom is what gives me my rights as a human being what keep my mind sane at night knowing that I am able to go to sleep without the fear of someone watching my every move. The reason I chose freedom over safety is because there really isn’t that much safety right now, with everything that has been happening for decades where law enforcers were taped beating individuals without a lawful reason or just overly using their authority to beat a man half to death when they were nowhere in danger. For example in class this week we watched a video on youtube where a taxi driver Rodney King was beat brutally by the Los Angeles police officers to the point where his leg got broken from the force of their batons, Rodney was speeding when he got pulled over the officers didn’t see any weapons on him nor did they have to use aggressive force with there being 10 officers at the scene to contain one human being for speeding. I fear for my own life in this country as a young black minority, the reason freedom is the best choice is because with the government watching my every move who knows if they’ll set me up just for the enjoyment of it for them to see a black teen get beat or killed in cold blood simply for nothing.

Freedom or liberty as a political concept remains a trouble-some notion which continues to be widely disputed. Historically, being 'free' did not refer only to a legal status, but also to a set of character virtues one possesses in becoming a man free of limitations. Within the discourse, there is a general consensus that freedom is contrary to that of constraint. Hence freedom can be thought of as being free from any restraint in pursuing one's desires or choices. Philisophers within the literature of liberty frequently frame their discussion of freedom in terms of the negative and positive distinction. In this essay, discussion will be given to the positive conception of freedom. Positive liberty is a theory that defines freedom as the power

Freedom is a feeling as well as a state of being. It can be both internal and external. Although it is nearly impossible to achieve true freedom, many people are able to find a balance between everyday stress and letting go. For example, imagine a bird in a cage. Internally, the bird is free to think and desire anything, but externally, it is trapped inside a cage and therefore limited in where it can go and what it can do. The bird has accepted that it will be in a cage forever but this sadness can be balanced out with the knowledge that it will always be cared for and loved.

Freedom, what is it exactly? My definition of freedom is doing what you want but you still

Isaiah Berlin famously introduced two concepts of liberty – ‘negative liberty’ and ‘positive liberty’ in his Four Essays on Liberty. Berlin describes negative liberty as ‘to be free to the degree to which no human being interferes with my activity … Political liberty in this sense is simply the area within which a man can do as he wants.” In contrast, positive liberty is the ability to be in control of one’s own life, free from internal obstacles to living the way one would rationally want to. People normally believe that ‘negative liberty is a good thing’, it is a very important for the state to prevent the interferences for an individual to act. However, it may not be an entirely good thing, because ‘negative liberty’ may not be sufficient by itself.

“Freedom” is a very difficult term to define with a short, simple statement. It is loaded with so much meaning because every person has a different set of personal experiences and ideas that can apply to their own concept of what experiencing freedom is all about. In defining freedom, it is best to start with a wide array of different ideas and put them together to create one major explanation that encompasses all the ideas. The Oxford English Dictionary offers several short definitions that can be used to build one ultimate definition. The first offered is “Exemption or release from slavery or imprisonment; personal liberty.” This definition only relates to someone who is or was in complete

What do most people imagine when they hear the word freedom? A teen may pray to turn 18 and move out. A chinchilla may feel free when let out of its cage. Some people may believe in America; the land of the free and the home of the brave. Or many may use a dictionary definition which is the power to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint. But in this case freedom is not judging others, but accepting others.