On the 4th of July 1776, the thirteen colonized states declared their independence. The settlers wanted their independence from Great-Britain; they paid a lot of taxes but had nothing in return, had not liberty of trade, had to support the war effort and didn’t have any American representative. This led to the Independence war. At that time, George III ruled over England. He was a stubborn king who wanted to create an absolute monarchy. To him, colonies were a way to dominate Europe in time of war for they had considerable resources. In 1783, the war was settled by the Treaty of Paris and Americans gained their freedom.
Extract of the Declaration of Independence can be found here:
What values is this society founded on?
This society is founded on Puritans values: All man were created equal and have undeniable rights. Those rights are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Theses values are self-evident and were a source of inspiration for many people (French included) . The declaration was a foundation of the new societies they were creating at the time. This Republic gave power to the people and in 1919, it gave women voting rights. It also separated the three main powers.
(French people were inspired by it but added “brotherhood” instead of “the pursuit of happiness”. )
A critical look on the text:
Since everyone has a right to live, why is there a death penalty or abortions?
“All men were created equal” –> What about the African population with the civil War?
The declaration has some ideals –> Gives it a Utopian aspect
I have been to the States before and was pretty amazed to see how patriotic people were. I can tell this means something to them. When I sneaked in Senior High for a day, I kinda got caught in the middle of what is called the “Allegiance pledge” and the whole classroom became really silence and pledged allegiance to their country. I’ve also been there for the fourth of July and wow, so much blue, red and white everywhere! When I compare it to France…Well, we’re not very patriotic! x)
Anyway, back to our study!
This declarations was inspired by a great thinker:
He was a philosopher and was considered as one of the most important enlightened thinker. His ideas revolve around the theory of the State’s nature which is basically freedom and Happiness…He stated a country had the right to rebel if its government didn’t respect Human rights (That’s what he called the Social Contract) and that human being had several natural rights: Liberty,possession, the pursuit of Happiness, life…He also talked about the separation of the State and the Church.
He had a great influence on the declaration of Independence and many of his principles were kept.
(picture credit: RadoJavor – no copyright infringement intended; for educational purposes)