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Enlightenment Idea Of The Declaration Of Independence

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The Declaration of Independence, ratified in 1776, was a major stepping stone from tyranny to democracy. Our founding fathers wanted a government which served the people’s best interest and created the Declaration of Independence to showcase this. They took inspiration from the philosophers of the Enlightenment era. In the document, they started off with the Preamble, stating our natural rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, followed by the grievances to the English King, their attempts for reconcile, and finally the declaration of their independence from the monarchy. This document was the first in history to create a country based on rules of equality, unalienable rights, and citizens having the right to overthrow a tyrannical …show more content…

These unalienable rights mentioned were “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Two out of these three ideas originated from John Locke’s argument that the government was meant to serve and protect citizens’ rights to life, liberty, and property. Also mentioned in the document is Locke’s idea of the right to overthrow a tyrannical government that is not serving the best interest of the country’s citizens. Separation of church and state which was yet another Enlightenment idea going around at that time inspired the writing of the US Constitution. In the end, Thomas Jefferson was inspired by the radical thinking happening at that time during the Enlightenment period from its …show more content…

The ideas of natural rights and all men are created equal only applied to white men and not anyone else. Women of all colors, and colored men were not included when writing about their natural born rights. In contrast, I believe the idea of having the right to overthrow a tyrannical government was already in motion when this document was being written. After all, this was how the United States was founded, going to war with a tyrant king that was abusing his power and not acting in the best interest of his citizens. Moreover, the right of the government being run by the citizens was also happening when this document was published. Even though it was only white men who voted, the voting process had already begun all so long ago. These rights are now truer than ever. After so many suffrage movements, protests, and fights for rights, everyone is equal no matter gender or color. In present day United States, every man or women of any color can vote, own property, have a position in government, and just have the same rights as everyone else. Equality and the rights of the people are ever so present when citizens are voting for our representatives, presidents, senators, etc. To this day, we still have the right to overthrow a tyrannical government just as the Enlightenment philosophers believed

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