Why Is Thomas Jefferson Wrong

Thomas Jefferson did not believe in racial equality, and thought that blacks were intellectually inferior. However in one of the most important documents in American history is the Declaration of Independence written by Thomas Jefferson himself, he says ”We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by there creator...” Jefferson knew that his ownership of slaves contradicted his principles. What Jefferson wanted most was for slaves to one day be free, he wanted them to go back to Africa. He refused to grant freedom to his own slaves because of their significances to his wealth, but overall he condemned slavery.

Thomas Jefferson once wrote that all men were created equal; however, he owned and sold slaves for profit. Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence, ran for election in 1800 and started the Jeffersonian Revolution with his election. Jefferson was a Republican who won the office from the previous Federalist president, John Adams. With his fresh presidency, Jefferson sought out to further limit the Federal Governments power and to give more democracy to the people. Jefferson believed in many things as a Republican and as a human, but his life-time and presidency oftentimes portrayed the opposite of his founding beliefs. These contradictions that Jefferson illustrated during his years showed a representation of not only American history, but even what it means to be human.

Thomas Jefferson once said, “When the people fear the government there is tyranny, when the government fears the people there is liberty.” Thomas Jefferson believed the best government was the one that governs the least . Jefferson stressed how a small government with limited powers is most likely to leave the people alone and have them enjoy the Blessings of Liberty. Furthermore, Thomas Jefferson was a man who had numerous accomplishments in his life. He was the author of the Declaration of Independence, author of the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom, founder of the University of Virginia, and the third President of the United States. His strict interpretation of the Constitution was due to his belief that the charter was designed to provide the people with a say in governmental affairs. Mr. Jefferson won the approval from the working class because he fought for them and not the powerful interests of the wealthy. Although Jefferson was a vocal and active leader in the rights of states, his recommendation of the Embargo Act and his support of the Non-Intercourse act resulted in his failure as the Commander In Chief.

Thomas Jefferson wrote “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal” yet, he held over two hundred slaves which would make this an extremely important example of the corruption Jefferson, will later go on to talk about in the following paragraphs. His childhood friend, Jupiter, was born a slave closely by his side while he was a young boy and later ended up being an owned slave by the Jefferson family. Jupiter was raised

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.

The philosophies of Thomas Jefferson are often at odds with one another. On one hand, he looks to enlightenment ideals and writes of natural rights and equalities for all men in his drafting of the Declaration of Independence (more on Jefferson’s and the Enlightenment can be found here). He also proposes legislature that prohibits the spread of slavery to new states. However, his role as a slave owner contradicts his philosophy on liberty in a profound way. His book Notes on the State of Virginia represents the depth of his thought against black people as an equal race to whites, and he includes a breakdown for the reasons that he believes integration is not a viable alternative to the problem of slavery (the full content can be read half way down the page here). Then, there are the facts surrounding his personal relationship with his slave, Sally Hemings and the children he fathered with her. This contradiction of attitude and philosophy is directly related to Jefferson’s cultural influences having grown up surrounded by slavery as an acceptable way of life. He ultimately falls back on society’s view of black people as inferior to justify his way of life, and calm his fears of the possible violent ramifications of emancipating his slaves (this is a reference to slave revolts). For more on this topic see my complete work here.

What they never knew was that Jefferson would both be respected and detested for his choices as president. Thomas Jefferson, a man divided, responsible for doubling our nation’s property through the Louisiana Purchase. But, he expanded it even further by driving the Indians into debt and forcing them to give him land to pay it off. An advocate for public education and religious freedom, Jefferson also degraded blacks. Additionally, Jefferson caused a disaster in his country in the years of of 1807 and 1809, isolating the United States from trade with Britain and France. This hurt the country and its people tremendously, corrupting the Southern economy. Although Jefferson is admired by his many successes, he is also looked down upon because of his numerous faults and imperfections. With his death on July 4, 1826, Jefferson was a man who is to be unforgotten - maybe because of his accomplishments, or his numerous mistakes that certainly made him

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

The man who started criticizing him as probably the writer Leonard Levy’s in his Book “Jefferson and Civil Liberties: The Darker Side”. In Chapter 14 “Hope and Heritage: Myth and Thomas Jefferson”, Gordon Wood really talks about Jefferson’s personal life. Thomas Jefferson is described as someone who had passion for partisan persecution, someone who didn’t care about the civil liberties, someone who thought he was morally perfect and used to judge people around him. In the chapter, they are comparing him to his friend James Madison. Thomas Jefferson wasn’t thinking about the country like Madison when he was taking decisions. While taking his decisions, he was mostly concerned about what his French friends would think of it than the needs of the American population. The main portion of Jefferson’s life, was his fight to abolish slavery. As it is written in this chapter, Thomas Jefferson hated slavery. He worked really hard to eradicate it in New Western territories. But apparently, he was never able to set all his slaves free. Many recent historians claimed that Jefferson’s acting toward Black people was very disgusting, revolting. Especially for someone who claimed that he wanted to eradicate slavery. During his life, he wanted to make sure that the eradication of slavery will be accompanied by the deportation of Back people of the country. For him, Black people living in a white’s man America was totally unbearable. He was “Racist”. In his

But that is what Jefferson wants. He wants to live among rich people and be, or at least pretend to be as rich as them. So he decides “never again to speak to black people” (28) that he now considers as a waste of time and money, because they were always borrowing money from him and never pay back. Then, he used all his savings to buy a big empty house in Rosedale. What Jefferson never thought about is how he was going to fill up the house not only with furniture, but with friends and love. He found himself into an empty house, alone and lonely.

Paris, France. January 26, 1788 Jefferson writes a letter to Edward Bancroft saying that “giving liberty to slaves would be like abandoning children.” It would be like abandoning children because slaves have never been taught how to do anything but work so it would be unlikely for them to get jobs and make money. So, this is saying that Jefferson cares about his slaves. "Therefore, Thomas Jefferson is not a hypocrite because he wants slavery to end and, he believes it's an awful thing. When he wrote the declaration of independence he did not know African Americans were capable of learning, but once he was exposed to it, his opinion changed. Jefferson wants nothing more than to end slavery and he would do anything to make that possible.

At times, in order to pay some of his debt, Jefferson would have to part with his slaves. Thomas Jefferson was a big advocate for family unity. He would never sell individual slaves if it meant breaking a family apart. He would sell some slaves to purchase others as a “family” or one team. Thomas Jefferson was between a rock and a hard place, he needed the slaves to keep his head afloat. He would never mistreat his slaves, for he truly thought that all men were indeed created equal.

“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.

Although Thomas Jefferson had believed slavery was a gross violation of principles celebration in the declaration of independence and he also believed people of African descent that were biologically to inferior with whites and could never live a long whites in peace and harmony. It shaped his personal posture as a slave owner. Thomas Jefferson owned about 200 slaves but at any point in time, and over 600 of his lifetime. To protect from facing reality of the problematic status as of self-image as a father caring for what he called “his family”. We’re

Breaking new about Jefferson's secret life!! Many people people didn't know that Thomas Jefferson was a slave-owner! He is a racist man, who treated African-American slave as property, as many white folks do, but he didn't free most of his slave unlike other. Now of this finding, we can prove that he went on his word of say "all men are created equal." It's baffling to believe that a one of our great nation's Founder Father and our 3rd President, could ever do such a thing like this! What could have driven him to do this? Could it have been the death of his