The Beginning Of The Year

Thomas Paine’s characterization of America in his book Rights of Man describes American society which is different from today. While he effectively captured the diversity of America, he failed to describe how diversity separates citizens rather than bringing unity between them all.

In the books The Quartet and Thomas Jefferson, Joseph Ellis and Joyce Appleby discuss their thoughts on two important moments in American history and how they believe them to be revolutionary. The Quartet describes the political situation of the United States immediately following the American Revolution and how it made the transformation from a confederation into a republic. To do this, it follows the actions of four prominent men – George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison – as they work toward their goal of bringing about a new national government and discusses nationalism, issues such as economics and expansion, and arguments about personal, state, and federal powers. He argues that the debate over the Constitution was between “nationalists” and “confederationists”, that the second Revolution was a by-product of the first in that it took the systems of the newly-independent states and reworked them into a coherent national collective, and that without this change, the United States couldn’t have become a modern model of government.

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.”

The United States of America was established in the Enlightenment period. No other country has the imprint of this period like the United States. “The contributions of men like Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson to the founding and development of America and its ideals are inconceivable outside of an Enlightenment context,” (Staloff, 3). The ideals of liberty and equality echos the language of the Enlightenment and conveys the most intense thoughts about the political life and the rights of mankind. It was through this Enlightenment that they wrote the Declaration of Independence and founded the United States of America.

Some of the leaders of the American Revolution were influenced by Enlightenment ideas which are, freedom of speech, equality, freedom of press, and religious tolerance. American colonists did not have these rights, in result, they rebelled against England for independence. In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson wrote about American's natural rights to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." These ideas came from the Enlightenment, the ideals led towards the American Revolution soon after (Fisk). "The American Revolution must be considered as an anticolonial war for independence, not only a war of liberation from overseas rule but a war for freedom. The American Revolution was a movement to fulfill aspirations to acquire more property" (Morris, 3).

In today’s American society, the every day lives and routines of American citizens are impacted, affected, and ruled by the government. By studying the lives of people beginning in eighteenth century France, it is easy to see how the ruling government system impacts the everyday lives and routines of it‘s citizens. It is also easy to compare this society to the European civilization under the rule of Napoleon I, the American civilization under the rule of Woodrow Wilson, and Adolf Hitler.

While many historians might argue that the American Revolution was not so revolutionary in its nature, there is no denying the lasting effects that it has had not only on the continent, but the world. Through an analysis of documents from this period and the social, political, and economic changes that occurred in the colonies, it is clear that the colonial governmental system was radically changed during this time period. The political ideas that emerged from this revolution have shaped modern democratic governments for years, coupled with the advancement of other Enlightenment ideals.

The history and foundation of America was forged through the blood, sweat, and the tenacity of the colonists in the mid- 1700s. During this time of new hope and perspective, the colonists felt stifled by Britain’s tight hold on their country. They insisted on independence for their colonies and were enraged by their original land’s refusal to acknowledge their rights. Britain ignores the colonists’ natural rights and took advantage of America’s reliance on their finances and support. Britain’s government terrorized the colonists by denying their natural rights and abusing their power, leading to revolutions that would further shape the history of America.

Thirteen colonies, united strong and firm to bring down the King of Great Britain, who had been controlling them for a period of time. In these colonies, various people gathered together and formed a document known as The Declaration of Independence, that broke them free from the king and made them a nation, America. But before becoming America, they were held captive by the King of Great Britain, who did no good for the people and brought them nothing but misery. America slowly, but eventually evolved itself since the mid 1700’s and has become one of the strongest nations even till this day. With all these changes and history this nation has become of, so has it’s actions changed and outgrown throughout these years. The nation created in 1776 can be represented in various characteristics, as when the Age of Reason occurred. The Age of Reason focused on reason, individualism, and skepticism, impacting the society in a variety of ways, creating the colonies to react and show several emotions. During this period of time, people were convinced the reason held by humans could make the discovery of natural laws of the universe and natural rights of mankind. And this conflicted with the religious beliefs because people based on their life from the word of God and didn’t believe a discovery like this would prove God wrong. Above all, the two most important characteristics that best represent America during the Age of Reason are inquisitive

Recently, in the City of Philadelphia, home of the Continental Congress and the Liberty Bell representatives of the many states met in the same locations and the men who, just so recently, met there to declare us free from English tyranny and produce one of the greatest political documents in the history of human governance. All of us together followed the words of those men who met in Philadelphia and fought for our liberty and the idea of self-governance. And together, we all won the Revolutionary War and established a new nation on the earth. For several years we were guided by the Articles of Confederation, but as we were all new to the practice of self-governance (which itself was a new idea, so we had no real models to copy) many problems emerged which the Articles were not fit to solve.

The intellectual world of 1776 collectively preached the ideals of liberty, freedom, and equality. The Declaration of Independence had just been signed, and idealists all over the colonies flocked to discussions and debates about the road ahead, including the Revolutionary War, government structure, and policy. Fast forward ten years, and the same ideals were being discussed during what is now known as the Constitutional Convention. This discussion was crucial, as the stability and longevity of the country hung in the balance. With the disaster of the Articles of Confederations fresh in the minds of all in attendance, the Founding Fathers forged a radical new Constitution outlining a country with clear freedoms and rights for citizens, among

Thomas Paine, a revolutionary, intellectual, and supporter of American independence from England published a book titled, “Rights of Man” which deals with the government shielding the natural rights of its people. Initially, the book captures the diverse aspect of this nation, but it fails to reveal the struggles that arise to preserve and adapt to such a society. Paine expresses his optimism towards the supposed perfection of American society, as one “made up...of people from different nations,” with certain expectations. Additionally, the time gap between “Rights of Man” and modern America cannot be neglected. Paine wrote during an era in which “constructing a government on the principles of society and the rights of man” was the essential objective of the country. However, modern-day America experiences opposite ideals and Paine’s theory no longer remains true because of the educational gap between the rich and poor, terrorism, and racial profiling.

America’s Revolution gave birth to real applications of Enlightenment ideals, and in doing so spurred movements of independence and democracy around the world during the same time period and into the future. “Three major events of the American Revolution had great influence on Europe: Signing the Declaration of Independence, Implementing the ideas of Enlightenment, Forming the U.S constitution” (ADD SOURCE). In the years following the American Revolution, France fell into their own revolution, which Thomas Jefferson said “[The French Revolution] has been awakened by our [American] revolution” (Strayer 784). On the dawning of the French Revolution, a Paris newspaper announced that the United States was “the hope and model of the human race” (Dunn). Because the French were our allies in our revolution against Britain, many of their leaders had a very intimate experience with our ideals of freedom and political representation. They brought back the ideas they heard and witnessed and used them to shape their own revolution against King Louis XVI, and they were the most important parts of the revolution the French people built. “The French

The birth of a nation does not happen overnight nor with one word. One can clearly see how words and ideas have an impact on people’s thoughts and writing by examining “The Declaration of Independence” and Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense.” Basically, the two documents echo principles stated in John Locke’s “Second Treatise of Government,” and share a style of expressing their feelings on national issues; the authors examine and give reasons for colonial problems with the government and offer a solution. The tone and audience might vary, but the overall message is similar in its principles, showing the impact Locke and Paine had on such a vital document in our history as the “Declaration of Independence”.

“The story of post-revolutionary America,” writes Rosemarie Zagarri, “is the story of how American women and men sought to define – and ultimately to limit and restrict – the expansive ideals they had so successfully deployed against Britain.” In this excerpt from Revolutionary Backlash, Zagarri depicts the extreme radicalism of the American Revolution, while also suggesting that there were some constraints to its extremism. Unlike the normal way of life in European government and society, Americans desired a nation in which the inherent rights and freedoms of individuals were recognized and respected. While these rights and freedoms were ultimately achieved, many groups of people were still left out. Women of all kinds, people of color,