The Age Of Enlightenment By Thomas Jefferson

One reason that The Declaration of Independence was so influential was that Thomas Jefferson’s claims against the King of England were easy to understand and logical. Typical complaints include “For quartering large Bodies of Armed Troops among us;” and “For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent.” Jefferson uses plain language that everyone can understand to point out large injustices done by the king. His statements about the King are short and to the point. He does not waste any words or bore the reader with abstract writing or excess words and thoughts. He goes from one point to the next to the next in such a fashion that the reader’s concentration is never broken. His points are logical and everyone living in the colonies at that time and many people around the world probably had some idea of the incidents behind all his grievances against the king. Jefferson raps up the injustices done by the king by declaring the United Colonies to be free and independent states.

In comparing Thomas Jefferson’s Letter to the Danbury Baptists, The Declaration of Independence, and U.S. Constitution, it is evident that the basis of all three documents is the idea that all human beings possess God-given fundamental rights and that government is created to protect those rights. The Declaration of Independence, written by Thomas Jefferson in 1776, is the first of the three documents penned. This is important because it defined the rights of liberty and equality of all American citizens as outlined in John Locke’s natural law thesis (Martin, page 113). In addition to providing an itemized account of the grievances colonist’s held against King George III of England, it served to justify the colonist’s quest for independence and separation from British rule. The Declaration of Independence conveyed to the crown that "all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, which among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." The Founders’ of the New World understood that their pursuit of liberties and autonomy specified in the Declaration of Independence could not come to fruition without instituting decrees. In 1787, the U.S. Constitution, was written to replace the Articles of Confederation with a better defined series of stringent laws that would legally uphold the freedoms and privileges established in the Declaration of Independence. The First Amendment of the Bill of Rights in

In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson, one of the founding fathers of the United States, explains to his readers why the colonies chose to abolish Great Britain’s government. His goal is to inform the readers that the government has certain responsibilities to the governed and that the British failed to adhere to its responsibilities to its colonists. His second goal is to justify their actions by explaining why it was not considered treason. By establishing his credibility and appealing to ethos, pathos and logos, Jefferson successfully wrote an informative, impactful, and inspirational document.

The Declaration of independence was a great successful document written by Thomas Jefferson a great idealist and a man from the age of enlightment, he was a great writer and was the one chosen to write the declaration of independence, he wrote it with a lot of thought about how people’s emotions would be, how they would react, and how it would work all to their advantage, and with very rhetoric language he wrote this document, stating truths and lies about what was happening in the colonies at that time.

This leads to the Declaration of Independence which was adopted July 4, 1776. This document was meant as a self-esteem boost for the new Americans; giving them inalienable rights. “The most important statement in the declaration is the human rights, where the life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are extolled” (Gaynor). “He [Thomas Jefferson] wrote: "... it was intended to be an expression of the American mind" (Early America). Jefferson meant that the American people wanted freedom from high taxes and the big government in England.

Thomas Jefferson considers himself a contributor to the Age of Enlightenment. Through many of his writings he expands on the philosophies of the great European writers of that era - Rousseau, Locke, Hume, and Leibniz. In “The Declaration of Independence,” Jefferson directly adopts several themes found in the work of French writer Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Rousseau’s “The Origin of Civil Society,” provides a foundation for most of Jefferson’s ideas in “The Declaration of Independence.”

“A treasure that we should continually use for our decisions on the new challenges we face.”(Esposito) Frank J. Esposito echos the purpose of The Declaration of Independence(DOI)in this new era and how it should be implemented in a modern government. The DOI is the most influential piece of writing that has ever come to be. It served it’s purpose in 1777 by uniting the colonists against Great Britain in a bold declaration of independence. This persuasive essay was written by Thomas Jefferson and edited by important figures, which are now known as the founding fathers. Not only, is the DOI an important part of history, but it has also become the model for many other persuasive writings. Thomas Jefferson used techniques like siding with the acrimonious reader, considering the historical precedent and the conceding of a point, to create a compelling argument to persuade the reader’s of The Declaration of Independence.

The Enlightenment was a period in the eighteenth century where change in philosophy and cultural life took place in Europe. The movement started in France, and spread to Great Britain, Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Germany at more or less around the same time, the ideas starting with the most renowned thinkers and philosophers of the time and eventually being shared with the common people. The Enlightenment was a way of thinking that focused on the betterment of humanity by using logic and reason rather than irrationality and superstition. It was a way of thinking that showed skepticism in the face of religion, challenged the inequality between the kings and their people, and tried to establish a sound system of ethics. The ideas behind the

The job of drafting the Declaration of Independence fell to the youngest member of the committee, Thomas Jefferson. In composing the declaration, Jefferson drew on ideas from the Enlightenment, especially those of John Locke. Not only did the declaration represent a milestone in the history of the United States, it also turned the political philosophies of 18th century Europe into real political practice.

“As the "silent member" of the Congress, Jefferson, at 33, drafted the Declaration of Independence” (Freidel, 2006). Jefferson believed in the Constitution and as Senator of the state of Virginia, abided by it. The words of The Declaration of Independence written by Jefferson remain part of the verbiage today, "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" (Biography.com, 2014).

Eugene R. Sheridan is a member of the Princeton University Department of History and Senior Associate Editor of the Papers of Thomas Jefferson. He has written books and articles on a number of subjects in early American History. To begin with, the author cites specific achievements that Thomas Jefferson made, starting with the contributions he did when he was part of the Continental Congress. “As a member of the Continental Congress, he proclaimed in the imperishable prose of the Declaration of Independence the values of liberty, equality, and natural rights that always have been at the heart of the American experiment in self-government” (Sheridan 64). He specifically speaks about his participation as the main author of the Declaration of Independence.

“We mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.” Thomas Jefferson believed those words as he chose to write the Summary View of the Rights of British America, The Declaration of Independence, and the Virginia Constitution. Jefferson retained many powerful beliefs about the freedom and rights of America. Jefferson was an amazingly gifted writer. He knew what he wanted to express and how to put it into words. These writings along with many more played an immense part in gaining America the freedom we enjoy today.

The Declaration of Independence is one amongst the elemental documents that arranged the inspiration to the United States and its additional development. The Declaration of Independence opened the method for the creation of the new country and therefore the new nation, wherever all people might have a chance to be free and understand their full potential. At identical time, Thomas Jefferson apparently tried to convey the core of his philosophy, political and social views within the Declaration of Independence to form conditions for the event of the best state.

Jefferson began the document by explaining that the rights of the Americans had been brutally molested by the unjust King of Britain. Following this accusation, he provided evidence of this abuse by listing not just a mere handful, but 27 grievances that the King had inflicted against the colonies. Lastly, the conclusion of this article publishes and declares that the United Colonies have the right to be freed from the British and that they have the right to govern themselves as any free country does. The strategic organization of the Declaration of Independence allowed the colonies to be powerfully represented by such a clear and prudently worded

Thomas Jefferson was the author of The Declaration of Independence, and according to Bellis, Jefferson was also a jurist, a diplomat, a writer, an inventor, a philosopher, an architect, a gardener, a negotiator of Louisiana Purchase, but he only requested three of his many accomplishments to be noted on his tomb. (2005). Thomas Jefferson was a very smart politician and he knew what to say to whom in order to enhance their support. This essay will be an analytical paper discussing Thomas Jefferson and The Declaration of Independence. It will also clarify the basic ideas contained in The Declaration of Independence; the influence of the Declaration upon American War of Independence,