A turning point is a major historical event that has led to important political, social, and economic changes. There has been many turning points throughout time and American history, civilizations are constantly changing and adapting to new situations. The signing of the Declaration of Independence was a major turning point in the history of America, because it changed the course of American history drastically and let to the United States independence from Britain. The signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 established the foundation for the basic natural rights of all Americans, which are still relevant today. The Declaration was a statement of grievances against the British, which “announced to the world the unanimous decision of the thirteen American colonies to separate themselves from Great Britain” (Azerrad). The Declaration was written by one of the founding fathers, Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson's ideas for the Declaration were heavily influenced by ideas of enlightenment thinkers, such as John Locke. John Locke's ideas include: natural born rights, the social contract, and consent of the governed. Natural born rights were crucial in the forming of America because they declared Americans had certain undeniable rights; life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Jefferson states American’s have natural rights in the preamble of the Declaration of Independence, “We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,” (Declaratio... ... middle of paper ... ...nd Britain, and high taxes. Finally, the signing of the Declaration was caused by the colonists resentment towards British rule, and led to American independence from Britain, and new American government systems. Works Cited Azerrad, David. "The Declaration of Independence." The Heritage Foundation. N.p., 1973. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. "Declaration of Independence." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. Gibson, Carl. "The 21st Century Declaration of Independence." The 21st Century Declaration of Independence. Reader Supporter News, 4 July 2013. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. Hazelton, John Hampen. "The Declaration of Independence - Google Play." The Declaration of Independence: Its History. Mead Dodd, n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. Kindig, Thomas. "Related Information." Ushistory.org. Independence Hall Association, 4 July 1995. Web. 24 Feb. 2014.
The Declaration was for the colonists to seek for independence. The quote most widely known is “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.”(Jefferson) The Declaration of Independence was written mostly by Thomas Jefferson who stated the above quote. Like the Declaration of Sentiments, all men are created equal. The Declaration of Independence allows the people to have the right to abolish an proposition that they do not agree with. They also have the right to institute a new government if they do not feel it is not ensuring safety and happiness to everyone; they can vote in a government who will ensure this. It is also the peoples right to throw out a government when laws are abused. Every year on July 4, people in the United States celebrate Independence day, also known as the Fourth of
Thomas Jefferson wrote his Draft of the Declaration and was influenced by many of the ideas and concepts of John Locke. He did modify some of Locke’s ideas but most of them were the product of Locke’s belief in the Law’s of Nature and the fundamental unalienable rights of all human beings. As a result, their writings influence and demonstrate basic rights of people and make up our government. The world in which we live in is a product of the ideals of these men, who lived over 200 years ago; we are a representation of a republic
The Declaration of Independence refers to “our constitution”, in this respect they were referring to the Ancient British Constitution. The United States was expressing the fundamental aspects of British politics; among these were Classic Republicanism, Enlightenment Liberalism, and Protestant Christianity. In the Declaration they balanced all of these English traditions; expressing what they believed to be the true spirit of the British Constitution. As Edmund Burke would say, “(the Revolution) was carried out not to create new liberties but to preserve old ones” (Wood, p. 58). The main issue that the colonies had with the British following 1763, was England’s belief in the doctrine of
Imagine living in a country where no citizen has a say in the government’s actions. Envision a nation where the ruler can tax people without permission and the common people are forced to obey without question. That was life in The Colonies before the year of 1776, when the Declaration of Independence was created. Great Britain passed laws whether it benefited the people or not. Before the Declaration of Independence was composed, a plethora of unnecessary taxes were approved. These taxes sent many colonists into debt. According to “The Declaration of Independence, 1776,” published on Office of the Historian, a famous tax called the Stamp Act was passed by Parliament. This tax forced colonists to purchase stamps for every paper product
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” These were the mighty words that Thomas Jefferson wrote down he developed his portion of the Declaration of Independence. Some people do not recognize Thomas Jefferson as one of the founding fathers, with other names like Ben Franklin and John Hancock being thrown around the room, but yet we should see him as the most important one. Thomas Jefferson was assigned to make a draft for the document. He chose to talk about how all men are equal and everybody deserves life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The declaration of independence is one of the most important documents in history and made all men equal, meaning one race is not superior to another. This influenced the public by making the black race have hope because now, they could see that one day they would be just as equal as...
There are many events that have happened in our history that have helped shape our country into what it is today. One of those events that helped change our country was the Decleration of Independance. The Declaration of Independence was written on July 4th, 1776. And this document was written so we were separate from England and so we weren’t under their power anymore. It meant that we were going to become a self-governing country. This was the very first big step we took to become our own country. And if we hadn’t have separated from England we wouldn’t be the country we are today. This helped build our nation and bring us closer together so we were united as one. This is when we realized we could be something bigger than what we were.
Specifically, the idea that man is endowed with certain liberties that were granted by God and/or nature was advocated by the Enlightenment thinkers. Many people took aim at arbitrary governments and the “divine right of kings.” John Locke in return offered principles of constructing a constitutional government, a contract between rulers and the ruled. In Document 7, John Locke in The Two Treatises of Government stated that men consent to enter society in order to preserve their natural rights such as life, liberty, and property. The government should protect people's natural rights and if not, then the people can remove their consent because the government derives its power from the consent of the people. John Locke wrote during the time period of the Enlightenment; therefore, his thoughts were based on the emerging idea of individualism furthermore man's inherent rights and powers. Thomas Jefferson wrote in The Declaration of Independence (Document 9) that are all men are created equal and that they are endowed with certain natural rights. The Declaration of Independence was written because of England's tyrannical rule over the American colonies thus, the citizens felt that their natural rights were being abused by the English government. Individualism was indeed formed in response to the skepticism of the Church as
It was the 4th of July in 1776 when delegates from all thirteen colonies assembled at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Not knowing the full significance of what was about to take place that day,the delegates would do something that would forever change the course of the American people.
Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence for the American colonists to proclaim freedom from Great Britain's oppressor, King George III. American colonists had been suffering for many years when this important document was drafted. King George III had pushed the colonists into a state of tyranny and most decided it was time to start an independent nation under a different type of government. Jefferson focused his piece toward many audiences. He wanted not only King George III and the British Parliament to know the American's feelings, but also the entire world. The time had come for an immense change amongst the American colonists and Jefferson made sure everyone was aware of it by using his superior strategies of persuasion.
The Declaration of Independence includes four parts. The first part is the Preamble, which explains why the Continental Congress drew up the Declaration. They felt their reason should be explained to England.
There are many important factors in the Declaration of Independence, which enable the foundation of a new government. These range from describing grievances with England, to how government should be run differently, to the first statement of separation. The first step to the foundation of a new government is the uniting of a people in a common goal. Since all people were feeling violated by English soldiers, it was necessary to state these grievances in order to make people aware that they are not alone. When people learned that others felt the same as them emotion was stirred. The Declaration of Independence listed the grievances such as, “He has erected a multitude of new offices, and sent hither swarms of officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.” The next important step to the foundation of a new government was to gain peoples ambition by showing how the government would be run if a new party took over. This goal was achieved by stating the rights of man. “We hold these truths to be self evident: That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” This statement made people hopeful and feel kindly toward this new government. The final step in the preparation for a new government was separation from the old government. This was declared twice in the Declaration of Independence. In the beginning, “That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, driving their just powers from the consent of the governed,” and in the end, “that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British crown, and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved. In conclusion, the Declaration of Independence was able to motivate people, give them ambition, and made it simple for Americans to take action.
A turning point is a problem in a persons life that they have to solve. The book
What is the Declaration of Independence? The declaration of independence states that all individuals have inalienable rights, requiring life, liberty, and property, a document by which the thirteen colonies proclaimed their independence from Great Britain. If these rights are not protected, people have the right to abolish the government and institute a new one that is willing to secure those rights and their happiness. The declaration was written by Jefferson when he had the vision that America should be liberal. While liberals wanted to over through the government, conservatives believed that not every person should receive the same privilege, not every person is the same and therefore, not every person should be created equal. America is viewed as a liberal state. Thomas Jefferson once said, “When the people fear the government, there is tyranny, when the government fears the people, there is liberty.” This was the strongest reason for the people to bear arms, so that they can be protected from tyranny in the government. People wanted their independence.
The Declaration of Independence was the key to winning such valuable freedom from the British government. During the years of 1773-1781, America fought drastic battles both orally and physically to win back what they knew they were losing. Freedom was the motivation behind these many trials, victories, and losses, but the forefathers were not to be delayed in their mission. It was not to be dragged asunder. They were determined, as anyone in this situation would be, to free the American colonists of the tyranny and monarchy that had held the new country’s government on a leash. America wasn’t willing to play puppets with England any longer. True, they attempted many forms of negotiation with the mother-country, but England’s pride
Turning points in history can mean a change in the way the things are done in the past, sometimes for the better, and other times for the worse. Two notable turning points in history were the Industrial Revolution and also World War I. These both had some political, social and cultural impacts.