Let 's Take A Second

“We hold these truths to be sacred & undeniable; that all mean are created equal....” One of Thomas Jefferson's examples of

a. Jefferson states that the rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are unalienable.

The Father of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson, a man who is recognized as the penman of the revolution and has had his name tarnished by the modern populace as being nothing more than a tempestuous hypocrite; a man who relentlessly advocates liberty, yet he also had ownership of a private plantation harboring an approximate 170 enslaved laborers. Within the essay Thomas Jefferson and the Meanings of Liberty, Professor Douglas L. Wilson of Knox College drives a compelling argument that sheds a newly found light on the seemingly convoluted actions of our notorious founding father. Professor Wilson indulges the reader in topics related to Jefferson’s infamy at a personal, empathetic level, and he makes it point not to apply a biased reasoning based upon ethics later to the era.

The Declaration of Independence uses many of the beliefs that are central to Locke’s Two Treaties of Government, which are all still very important to us today. Beliefs such as all people are equal, their natural rights, and the government’s role in its citizens lives was the foundation to building the United States the world knows today. The focal points in their two documents are almost exactly the same; Locke emphasizes people’s natural rights in the statement “that being all equal and independent, no one ought to hurt ones life, liberty, or property", while Jefferson highlights them by saying “they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness." It is commonly speculated that Jefferson’s first draft of Declaration of Independence actually copied Locke verbatim by saying “life, liberty, and property”, rather than “pursuit of happiness”. While this has never been proven, it shows how Jefferson utilized Locke’s ideas.

One of the most important parts of the Declaration of Independence is its preamble, and, more specifically, certain phrases contained within the preamble. Thomas Jefferson does an excellent job of explaining why the colonies are doing the things they are doing, and is very clear in stating what he and his associates think are the “unalienable rights” of the American people. Among these are “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” Probably one of the most famous lines in American history, I have chosen to focus on this phrase and what those three things might have meant to Thomas Jefferson and the other Founding Fathers as they prepared this document, as well as what they mean to us today.

“We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” - The Declaration of Independence

1B) The Declaration of Independence uses several rhetorical strategies, making the argumentative testament of the wrongdoings of the king an effective in pursuing equality for all men. Jefferson utilizes logos, pathos and ethos to prove his point to the country holding their liberty prisoner. Jefferson’s use of logos begins with stating the obvious reason the king should set the people free: the people have the right to the pursuit of “Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness” (2). The King has not done good to the people, in fact he has refused to pass the laws necessary to create order, dissolved representative houses, cut off trade, and imposed unlawful taxes upon the people. They have the basic human rights given to them by God that should set them free from the tyrannical king. Some of the emotional side of Jefferson’s views slip into this argument, such as "mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable" (5). While stating further wrongdoings, Jefferson’s use of pathos increases, raising the rage of the republic at the injustice of the rules they have been subjected to. “He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to complete the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation” (26). Jefferson calls for a sense of empathy from the crown and establishes a sense of severe discontent

Thomas Jefferson’s relationship with slavery is a complex one. It is, perhaps, ironic to think that someone who owned slaves would be an advocate to end that very same practice. How can Jefferson be hailed as a champion for slave rights because of his opposition to slavery while, at the same time, using other people as property? Although somewhat contradictory at first, the nature of the relationship between Jefferson’s opinions and his attitudes towards slavery will be thoroughly examined in order to understand the means by which he helped fuel a revolution in the context of a society that was so dependent on slavery. In other words, Jefferson was a significant piece of the abolitionist movement, and so that the seeming differences between what he did and what he preaches can be understood, we must also analyze the historical context. By doing so, we find that Jefferson was indeed ahead of the times, although in his own unique way, and the reason why it might have been significant that he was a slaveowner while trying to end the practice.

At some point in a person’s lifetime, whether it be through educational endeavors or everyday conversations regarding political leanings, the name Thomas Jefferson has definitely made an appearance in some aspect. This may be in terms of memorizing each president and their legacy or analyzing how the actions he made in office changed today’s society as whole. As a founding father, secretary of state, vice president, and eventually then a full-fledged president, there is no doubt Jefferson has had an incredulous impact on how the United States was created in its secession from Britain, and even how our government today deals with political matters and new arising issues. Though he has long since been discharged from

“We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

Once Banneker has grabbed Jefferson’s attention with this flattering, he begins pointing out the hypocrisy of what Jefferson has professed about liberty and freedom in the past, and how it contradicts to the way blacks in America are being treated. One powerful way Banneker does this is by reminding Jefferson of “that time in which the Arms and tyranny of the British Crown were exerted with every powerful effort in order to reduce you to a State of Servitude.” This comparison of Britain’s tyranny to slavery allows Jefferson to almost place himself in Banneker’s shoes, and to relate to the struggles that blacks have faced. It also points to Jefferson’s hypocrisy because of what Jefferson was specifically fighting for. These were the natural rights of “ ‘life, liberty, and the pursuit of happyness’,“ and the idea that “ ‘all men are created equal’.” These are the exact same things Banneker is fighting for, and the fact that Jefferson was an advocate of these same ideas makes it impossible for him to disagree with Banneker. The direct quotes from the Declaration of Independence, which was written by Jefferson, gives Jefferson two options: one, to be called a hypocrite, or two, to support Banneker and his purpose. Since Banneker’s overall goal is to end

We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men and women are created equal; that they are endowed certain unalienable rights; that among these rights are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. These rights are ensured by the humanity of the people around us, and judgement threatens these purest of rights. We must, as people, humans,

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

As a reader, I found this sentence very powerful, and I’m sure when it was written, it was even more so, seeing as the writers/readers were the ones experiencing the suffering. Another place that Jefferson appealed to pathos was in the last sentence. He says, “And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.” By showing how much everyone is willing to sacrifice (lives, fortunes, and honor), it illustrates the amount of heart and passion that went into this document. Logos of the document: Logic/reason The entire first paragraph is telling the readers why this declaration of independence needs to made in the first place. He states that there is a time when a society needs to break away from its past leader (Britain) and rely on the powers of God and the earth to create a new community. He is using logic to help his readers understand the meaning of this document. He continues to use logos in explaining why this declaration is important as he explains that it will “secure these rights,” which pertain to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Another time, logos is used in the declaration is when Jefferson is addressing all the wrongs the King of Britain did, and he lists them. He presents his evidence very

In the beginning of the letter he starts with an introduction. In the introduction he has two long sentences that have a beginning, middle, and end. The document starts with describing and explaining why the colonies have decided to be a separate nation. In the second sentence he defines what it means to be a human being. Jefferson mentions five “self-evident” truths, those truths are “that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness, That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed, that whenever any Form of Government becomes