Thomas Jefferson and the Meanings of Liberty

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.

Thomas Jefferson, in his inaugural address, stated that America was, “A rising nation, spread over a wide and fruitful land, traversing all the seas with the rich productions of their industry…advancing rapidly to the destinies beyond the reach of mortal eye...” He was a strong believer in the progressive nature of morality and held an optimistic view of the nature of humanity and human ability. Jefferson believed that all people were equally naturally endowed with the ability to determine right and wrong regardless of their status, and belief that gave him a foundation for his support of democracy. Jefferson believed that since all men had this judgement naturally gifted to them, they were capable of selecting the correct people to lead them and the nation would flourish with liberty. Jefferson’s optimistic faith in human nature and the democratic ideals he formed around its principles guaranteed the future liberty of the United States.

Thomas Jefferson represents the common man. He believes in strict adherence to the constitution. Jefferson wants the rights of an individual state to trump federal government regulations. The reason Jefferson believes in states’ rights is that he believes the government can better relate to the people in this form. He envisions the United States as a primarily agrarian society. Hamilton in favor of strong government and believes consolidation equates to efficiency and order. He envisions the United States as a primarily manufacturing society.

Works Cited Sadosky, L. J. (2016). Jefferson, Thomas. Worldbookonline.com. Retrieved from http://www.worldbookonline.com/student/article?id=ar286800&st=thomas+jefferson#tab=homepage Thomas Jefferson. (2009).

Jefferson’s triumphs and failures depend on where you stand in history. He penned skillful sentences and phrases that are used today, but many were contradictions of his own choices. “All men are born equal” is a glaring inconsistency about slavery—slaves were not equal. In his book, Richard Hofstadter said that Thomas Jefferson was filled with “gentle condescension” due to his aristocratic upbringing. He wanted a government that kept peace and protected property with little involvement in other aspects of life such as the bank and economy. At his very core, Jefferson was a well-spoken, thoughtful pragmatist, but incredibly contradictory. These contradictions made his successes as much as his failures.

The thing that draws us to Thomas Jefferson is his knowledge of the way things were and where things needed to go. In declaring he was the author of the Declaration of Independence gives us something we can trust. The two “all men are created equal” and the fact that Thomas Jefferson owned slaves are irreconcilable. Granted that he is forgiven in the sense that he is human and not much else. His level of understanding and the commitment he gave to it, absolutely is the story of America. With “equality” meaning they should be given the same opportunity to fulfill their dreams as others are. It’s is with that great privilege this country or other counties have an obligation to make sure a person has the skills necessary to live a full life. Thomas Jefferson was a great man, no not at our time, but his own time. Though, he didn’t set his slaves free upon his death as some of his friends had. Even though slavery didn’t end until the 19 th century, Thomas Jefferson was concerned that if they had let the slaves go free it would somehow backfire. Racist is a term we use but in Thomas Jefferson’s life it was unheard of. In a very normal way Thomas Jefferson gave us very up-lifting words and inspiration but at the very same time had beliefs that were that were against what he said. Not only Thomas Jefferson is human, but also to say “forgive him” is allowing him an easy way out. We hold him close as a man who did some extraordinary

The United States, a developing nation, remained under the influence of idealism and paradox for a period of time, and thus were incapable of being self-sufficient enough to run a country on their own. They relied on England to protect them and practically run the colonies from overseas. Subsequently, America joined the family of nations that preached men were created to be equal. This notion is expressed in Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence. Though in the past Jefferson was seen as the greatest founder of the United States, today his more unknown attributes in the nation have come to be a topic of discussion, making a debatable conversation about the concept of presentism arise. Today, Thomas Jefferson is examined and evaluated from many different perspectives of his career in both adequate and deficient aspects, arousing the question if founding fathers, like Jefferson, should be remembered for their highest achievements, or for their individual failures, and how the concept of presentism disarrays these outlooks.

Throughout the years of building a new nation, there were many conflicting views upon the constitution of the United States of America. Upon those conflicting ideologies was Thomas Jefferson’s beliefs and philosophy of government. After entering the White House, Jefferson greatly maintained his earlier philosophy of government of believing in the states rights by attempting to reserve state's self-government, expressing the flaws in the Constitution, and gaining critics against himself.

“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 by Thomas Jefferson is a document written in 1776 that aimed to create equality among all persons on earth as well as grant everybody certain unalienable rights. Nearly 187 years after this document was written, Martin Luther King Jr. wrote a letter from inside the Birmingham jail addressing the inequality that African American people were facing in the South. Nearly all white people in the South during this time were interpreting the Declaration in different ways that supported the segregation of African Americans as well as white supremacy, where they took the phrase “separate but equal” out of context. Martin Luther King Jr. provides detailed events of unjust treatment based on race within his letter where he aims to re-interpret Jefferson’s principles of

He denounced slave owners while he was owning and using slaves. Thomas Jefferson was supposedly a good slave owner and his hypocritical ways accused others not to own slaves. Jefferson believed that slaves were dependent on the white men, when he himself depended on his

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,

When most people hear the name Thomas Jefferson, they think of The Declaration of Independence or possibly his political career accomplishments of the first Secretary of State, second Vice President, or third President of the United States (Jefferson, Thomas 111). Jefferson’s success that shaped him began in his early years. His education, family, and his inherited love for the outdoors carried him through each phase of development and into adulthood. Thomas Jefferson said, “On matters of style, swim with the current, on matters of principle, stand like a rock. (A Brief 2017)”. Thomas Jefferson possessed responsibility, a strong-will, an outstanding work ethic, love for education, and courage all of which match up with other Founding Fathers of our great nation.

America is commonly called the “Land of the Free”, but the abundance of liberties, and liberties for all, has not always been the case. The Puritans were some of the first to settle in the New World, but they were self-interested and did not come with the purpose of creating a free state for all. As time progressed, so did their believes, and by the time Tocqueville arrived from France, liberty was an important aspect of American life. So important that people would fight and die for it. Tocqueville, while impressed at the amount liberty and freedoms that citizens had, believed that America had a long way to go before it could call itself a truly free country. Fast forward over a hundred years later, and John Rawls lived in a time were the

Thomas Jefferson was born to be one of the most powerful and wealthiest men in history. As an influence in our American history, he has accomplished so much that has shaped this nation for the better. Jefferson was educated in Virginia and practiced law at the College of William & Mary. many say that jefferson was not as successful as facts show. That in many theories, that jefferson was indeed a racist, a liar, a hypocrite, and a slaveholder just like his father. These arguments have gone on for years to find the truth whether or not jefferson was this successful president or this inconceivable man who played the part of a good person who actually was not. I do believe that all the achievements that jefferson had accomplished were real. I