The Age Of Enlightenment : The Ideas Of The Enlightenment

The Declaration of Independence was formed resulting from the treatment of 13 colonies from the British government without representation after subsequent denials to be represented and treated equal. This historic document was revolutionary because it’s what began the transition of our government into a democracy unlike that of parliament in the 1700’s. The British government and their ruling made decisions that didn’t involve what was right for the people; only what was in the best economic interest of parliament. This caused significant hardships on the American colonies which eventually led to them coming together as a people and forming this declaration.

The Declaration of Independence was a statement adopted by the thirteen colonies to represent their new found independence from Great Britain. In 1776, over the course of a month, many authors, most importantly Thomas Jefferson created the infamous 1,458 worded document. The intentions of the document and of Thomas Jefferson was to persuade people to side with the rebellion and disassociate from Great Britain publicly. Jefferson also wanted to explain under what circumstances the governed could justly overthrow the government, as well as what rights every man should have in the colonies. Through the use of numerous paragraphs in the document, Thomas Jefferson appealed to the commoners by making a list of offenses of England to The Colonies.

The Age of Enlightenment was arguably one of the most defining eras in history regarding the transition of cultures from pre-modern traditions to current modern thought and philosophy. The Enlightenment came about through many intellectuals’ desires to separate from centuries old political and social traditions, such as absolutism and divine right. The movement advocated the use of reason rather than focusing on religion and began to break away from the bonds of religious tyranny, as well as long-standing notions of sovereignty. The Enlightenment age was the means for these intellectuals to publish their philosophies and theories, which in turn initiated revolution in political and social practices throughout Europe and consequently the entire

Throughout the Enlightenment, philosophes have made discoveries as well as have ideas that have revolutionized society as we know it today. The Enlightenment took place during the 17th and 18th century in Europe. During this period, philospohes, or philosophers, would discuss different questions and brought new, intellecutal ideas that brought out the Age of Reason. There is many different points of view of what the philosophes main idea was during the enlightenment. The main idea of the philosophes was greater individual freedom. This idea was a key part of their thinking in three areas: government, religion and women's rights.

The Enlightenment period was an extremely impactful revolution which caused changes in societies around the world. It began in 1651, people across the country took a stand against their unfair rights. In order to have a peaceful society, everyone must be treated with equality which can only occur if there is a fair government system in place. If people have to fight and kill to have their natural rights granted, something has to be done about it. The enlightenment period encouraged the people to share their ideas when before they felt they had no say. When the people come together to fight for something they believe in many good and bad outcomes can take place. This time period led to many changes that have drastic effects on history. As people joined multiple documents were created showing the impact of this time period. A couple of these influential documents was the English Bill of Rights, U.S constitution, and the Haitian Constitution.

The Declaration of Independence is a document, saying how the British government wanted to halt their authority, thus wanting to construct their own government . It starts off, by saying that it introduced reason it was created- colonists beliefs about the purpose of the government. Also, complaints against King George lll, actions he took that the colonists believed violated their rights and principle of government. Finally, the colonists officially declared the United States as a independent nation. "The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not" (Thomas Jefferson).

The Declaration of Independence is a well-known document that is major part of American history. It was created because the British government was violating the colonists’ rights and the colonists demanded their independence as their own nation. Although there have been many interpretations of the Declaration of Independence, three of the major reasons were a bid for French support, an attempt to swing uncommitted Americans to the revolutionary cause, and a statement of universal principles, which led the colonists to unite to revolt against the British.

The Declaration of Independence was a statement written and approved by members of the Second Continental Congress in Pennsylvania on July 4, 1776. The Declaration was the colonies announcing that they were officially separated from Great Britain and were independent sovereign states. The Declaration can also be seen as a declaration of war, because they are basically saying that they are breaking off from England and if England wants them back they will have to take them back. The Declaration of Independence influenced the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights by introducing the principles and ideals behind their fair and equitable government.

Essential Documents in the Foundation of the United States  The Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution are documents that are different from one another, but both play significant roles in the foundation of the United States. The Declaration of Independence was written on July 4th, 1776 and the U.S. Constitution was written 11 years later on September 17th, 1787. The Declaration of Independence can simply be put as a declaration of the United States independence from Great Britain and King George III. It is essentially a fight for freedom from Great Britain. The Declaration of Independence documents 27 grievances against King George III to further provide reasoning for the separation from Great Britain.

The Declaration of Independence, mainly authored by Thomas Jefferson, is a document that was written with the intentions in mind of ridding the Colonies of America of British monarchy rule. Thomas Jefferson’s intent was to reach the minds and hearts of all those that would read the Declaration of Independence and provide a sense of unity that declaring independence from England was the right thing to do. Jefferson had the difficult task of,” keeping a revolutionary spirit alive while keeping secret what that revolutionary spirit serves: a political situation that promises liberation but relies on durable relations of domination.”

The Declaration of Independence was the first document to be adopted by the founding fathers in 1776. Its main purpose was to separate from the British Monarchy. The colonists knew this would be a clear step towards a new form of practicing self-government. The form in which the colonist decided to move towards was a Democracy. Which was shown in the U.S Constitution. This meant that everyone would have a part in the new government system unlike the British where one had little to no say. With this declaration, the 13 Colonies became the United States of America.

The colonists wrote the Declaration of Independence in 1776 to once and for all establish the fact that the colonies were separating from Britain. This document helped them convey that statement after almost 15 years of anger and frustration with Britain. Another reason they wrote it was because they realized that after eleven years of complaining and asking the British for reform, that their requests were falling on deaf ears and that the

The ideals of the Enlightenment are the basis of our democracies and universities in the 21st century: belief in reason, science, skepticism, secularism, and equality. In fact, no other era compares with the Age of Enlightenment. Classical Antiquity is inspiring, but a world away from our modern societies. The Middle Ages was more reasonable than its reputation, but still medieval. The Renaissance was glorious, but largely because of its result: the Enlightenment. The Romantic era was a reaction to the Age of Reason – but the ideals of today’s modern states are seldom expressed in terms of romanticism and emotion. Immanuel Kant’s argument in the essay ‘Perpetual Peace’ (1795) that ‘the human race’ should work for ‘a cosmopolitan constitution’ can be seen as a precursor for the United Nations.

France’s, The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, played an integral role in the development of democracy and the pursuit of liberty throughout Europe. This document was written and introduced by General Lafayette as a result of the French Revolution. The French Constituent Assembly passed it in August of 1789. Influenced by Thomas Jefferson, the American Declaration of Independence, the American Revolution, and the ideas of the Enlightenment philosophers, the document reiterates the values of the French Revolution. Declaring that the rights of man should be universal and remain valid no matter the time or place. The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen was a very purposeful document expressing many of the ideas of the French Revolution and the Declaration of Independence.

In the Declaration of Independence (US 1776), Thomas Jefferson introduces a statement accepted by the Second Continental Congress to declare the causes that compel the thirteen colonies to separate themselves from the British Crown and form their own individual states. This revolutionary document is organized into six sections. The Declaration of Independence (US 1776) opens with an introduction, declaring the reasons the American colonies want to leave the British Crown. They also state that their independence is absolutely necessary and unavoidable. The second section includes the preamble which provides the reasons for writing the Declaration of Independence (US 1776). Also included in this section is the colonist’s beliefs about government and John Locke’s theory on natural rights and social contract. In the third section, 29 grievances are listed against England and King George III. These complaints include taxation without representation, forcing the colonists to keep British soldiers in their homes, restricting the colonist’s trade, shutting down colonial legislatures and their attempts to seek redress from the king for their problems. The fourth section is stating the colonist’s efforts to appeal various decisions made by King George III and how their requests were met in vain. The fifth section is a formal declaration stating that the colonies are now “Free and Independent States” (¶ 6). The colonies state they will rule themselves and discontinue their loyalty to