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How Did Political Ideas Influence The Declaration Of Independence

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Examine The Influence Of Political Ideas on the Nature of the United States Declaration of Independence

On July 12th 1776, the congress voted for independence. After some revisions to Jefferson 's document the congress unanimously approved the Declaration Of Independence two days later on July 4th, 1776. Popular Political ideas had a most profound impact among the factors that influenced the nature of declaration of Independence. In 1776, Thomas jefferson wrote the Declaration of independance to assert America’s independence from Britain.Some of the main influences are; John Locke 's contrary theory of government,and Thomas Paine’s Common
Sense.
Jefferson’s justification for independence relied largely on John Locke’s contrary …show more content…

Common sense struck a resounding chord within the American conscience, as it was hugely influential and convinced many american colonists that the time had finally come to break away from british rule. In fact, the timing couldn’t have been better, only a few days before its release, King george delivered his opening speech to parliament calling for suppression of the american rebellion. If the American revolution were to succeed , the common people( farmers, merchants, soldiers,etc,) had to understand its causes, and common sense provided a comprehensible defence of the revolution. Paine began by criticizing ruler who violated, rather than that protected, the rights of their citizens, which led to the first principal theme, the evils of king george III, who Paine denounced as the royal brute of britain, he charged that the British Monarch was directly responsible for many injustices inflicted on the colonies , an argument Thomas jefferson would further develop in the declaration of independence. He hoped the accusations would provide an ideological justification against King George III that would gain support from colonists over anger issues such as the imposition of taxes without consent and suspension of trial by jury or the hiring of mercenaries. To colonists who feared the economic consequences of severing ties with britain, Paine argued that america could handle its own affairs and avoid the dangers of european wars if freed from british control.While its politics were influenced by enlightenment ideas about the importance of liberty, paine was among the first to articulate the need for america to distance itself from europe. This theme would grow increasingly more significant in american foreign

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Thomas Paine’s Common Sense written in 1776 compelled the American colonists to separate from their mother county, England. Paine asserted at the time that England only cared about its own economic status and cared little for the colonies (84). With this, Paine addressed that in the event of revolution, the colonies would prosper due to home field advantage and the heart and passion the militiamen have (123-124). Most importantly, after having dealt with England’s superiority, independence and a representative government would arise in the minds of the colonists (66). According to Paine, independence would not lead to inevitable war; independence would lead to a more unified America with a stronger economy and a centralized government that

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Thomas Paine was an English-born theorist and writer. He withheld an important voice in the revolution, using his common sense and beliefs to help build America's roots as he fought for independence against Britain, Paine has been known as the ‘voice of the revolution’ for this. He voiced is thoughts and beliefs in writings, specifically his piece called Common Sense. Common Sense was an opinionated piece that informed people of their freedom they are being deprived of, and to push for this freedom; their natural rights. He wanted separation between the colonists and Britain.

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During the late 1700’s, the American colonies were divided down the middle on whether they should split from Great Britain or not. Some believed leaving England rule was a huge mistake because of how well the colonies had done under it. The other side felt like the colonies had even more potential than where they were and thought that Britain was just holding America back from where they could be. Thomas Paine was on the opposition and thought that England wasn’t good for America’s benefit. He gave his reasoning in his pamphlet “Common Sense”, Paine believed that America was oppressed by Britain, that nothing good has ever came out of monarchies, and that the colonies were to developed at that point to be governed by another country.

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John Locke believed this as well, that the citizens should be able to change the government if needed. However, this also showed what Thomas Jefferson was going through. He was not only founding a government, but he was rebelling against one. He disliked the idea of monarchy, and giving total control to the government. This further shows that John Locke had an influence on Pres.

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Thomas Paine had successfully contributed to the declaration of independence and his 47-page pamphlet, “Common Sense”, impacted numerous Americans. “Common Sense” allowed citizens of the colony to

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In the eighteenth century there was a mix of opposition of independence, and a hope that the new nation would become a home of freedom. Thomas Paine’s argument was that America needs to gain independence from England. Some of the reasons Paine wrote Common Sense is because of unnecessary wars, monarchial government, and the way Britain treated America. Regardless of Paine’s popularity with Common Sense, Jonathan Boucher was a minister who explained his opposition of the revolutionary movement in his sermons. He believed if God wanted America to be independent it would have happened, and it is our duty as citizens to obey the laws because we will be disobedient to God.

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Due to his many experiences while living in Great Britain, he grew a desire to fight for the oppressed and often questioned the authority the British Monarchy had over the American colony. Thomas Paine wrote an influential Pamphlet “Common Sense” a scathing attack on the monarchial tyranny over the American colony and the significance of American independence. Thomas Paine’s ideas in this pamphlet were not original, however were more accessible to the masses due to the clear and direct way he wrote. His pamphlet helped to inspire The Declaration of Independence written by Thomas Jefferson. The Declaration of Independence contains a list of grievances against King George III and justifications for the assertion of the right for independence.

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Locke’s justification of revolt, based off of the theory of natural rights, was what gave Thomas Jefferson the background in writing The Declaration of Independence. Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence from the declaration written by John

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“The cause of America is in a great measure the cause of all mankind” (Paine 1). With the Revolutionary War beginning in 1775, and the publication of Common Sense, by Thomas Paine, only a year later, this statement was widely recognized and addressed the issue at hand: the fight for independence. According to Paine’s assertion, America’s desire for peace and freedom is a basic necessity of life; it is what all men desire. Despite this innate thirst for liberty, many residents of America’s thirteen colonies were fearful of Great Britain, and because of this fear, complied with Great Britain’s every whim. Consequently, most colonists were hesitant to fight against the mother country for independence.

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The American Revolution occurred in a period littered with anti-monarchial thoughts, revelations into areas of science and religion, and when other governments were reevaluating their long held positions on the perfect type of government. Even as America pulled away from Britain and became its own sovereign state, the French Revolution loomed in the horizon. One of the greatest catalysts for this period of change was the spread of propaganda and a movement led by scholars and revolutionists. One heavily inflammatory piece which would spread like wildfire across the colonies which would become the United States of America was Common Sense by Thomas Paine. In his seminal piece, Paine creates an argument through contradictions between the simple

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Before this many Colonists did not know of the harsh injustices done by the British. They also did not believe that the cause for revolution was urgent. Thomas Paine showed them that the cause was urgent by explaining the wrongs the British had committed and why King George was a tyrant. He also showed them that America did not need the British Empire 's protection. This quote shows his reasoning “Small islands, not capable of protecting themselves, are the proper objects for kingdoms to take under their care; but there is something absurd, in supposing a continent to be perpetually governed by an island.”

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In the winter of 1776, during American Revolution, the still young America faced three major dilemmas: their seemingly imminent defeat, the moral debate between the Whigs and the British loyalists, and the panic and confusion of the American public. In efforts to settle the three American dilemmas, Thomas Paine wrote The Crisis No. 1 in December of 1776. In his work, Paine aimed to calm the American public and convince them to stand up to the British, and turn the war into an American victory. Paine was very successful in this, and his paper was proclaimed as one of the most persuasive works of the American Revolution. Paine’s

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However, though Paine is clearly writing for his American audience, his radical ideas against all monarchies are universal. Paine challenges the current hierarchy of society by attempting to persuade the American people to support American Independence from British rule. He attempts to persuade Americans by appealing to aspiring businessmen and the public. Common

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Paine also wrote other works to motivate and ignite the colonial soldiers to keep fighting for the freedom of America. Paine’s works show and enhance the need for a new political system other than that of Great

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The Ideals of the Declaration: Which is Most Important? There are four ideals in the Declaration of Independence. The American Government became independent in July 1776. Five men wrote the Declaration of Independence, the main one being Thomas Jefferson.

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