TD 4 Declaration of Independence

15) What is Boston Massacre

The Boston Massacre occurred on March 5, 1770 when British soldiers in Boston opened fire on a group of American colonists killing five men. The Boston Massacre is remembered as a key event in helping to galvanize the colonial public to the Patriot cause.

6) What is a syllogism ? Give an exemple

a process of logic in which two general statements lead to a more particular statement a way of arguing in which two statements are used to prove that a third statement is true, for example: 'All humans must die; I am a human; therefore I must die. the Declaration as a whole is structured along the lines of a deductive argument that can easily be put in syllogistic form:

What is natural law

Natural law theory is a legal theory that recognizes law and morality as deeply connected. Natural law theorists believe that human laws are defined by morality, and not by an authority figure, like a king or a government.

How many parts do you find ?

1. introduction, 2. preamble, 3. indictment of George III, (indictment (of/on somebody/something) a sign that a system, society, etc. is very bad or very wrong, a written statement accusing somebody of a crime, the act of officially accusing somebody of a crime ) 4. denunciation of the British people, 5. conclusion.

8) Look up John Locke 9) Look up The second Treatise on Government

English philosopher and physician of 17th century regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers and known as the "Father of Classical Liberalism". The duty of that government is to protect the natural rights of the people, which Locke believed to include LIFE, LIBERTY, AND PROPERTY. If the government should fail to protect these rights, its citizens would have the right to overthrow that government. This idea deeply influenced THOMAS JEFFERSON as he drafted the DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE.

Comment the style of the text

Enlightenment prose style biblical, in which purity, directness, precision, and, above all, perspicuity were the highest rhetorical and literary virtues

13) Explain the references of §7: he has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

In 1774, when the various colonial assemblies entertained the proposition for a general congress, they were nearly all dissolved by the respective governors, to prevent the adoption of the scheme and the election of delegates to that national council.

When writing the first draft of the Declaration, Jefferson primarily drew upon two sources: his own draft of a preamble to the Virginia Constitution and George Mason's draft of Virginia's Declaration of Rights.

Mason said: "all men are born equally free and independent." Jefferson's Declaration of Independence said: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." Mason listed man's "natural Rights" as "Enjoyment of Life and Liberty, with the Means of acquiring and possessing Property, and pursuing and obtaining Happiness and Safety." Jefferson listed man's "inalienable rights" as "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness."

1) When was the text made public ? 2) Who are the authors/ is the main author

Text was made public on 4 July 1776 Thomas Jefferson is often called the "author" of the Declaration of Independence, he wasn't the only person who contributed important ideas. Jefferson was a member of a five-person committee appointed by the Continental Congress to write the Declaration. The committee included Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Robert Livingston, and Roger Sherman

11) What is a social contract ?

The Social Contract Theory sets out to explain the relationship between a government and its people based on a mutual understanding of that relationship. An implicit agreement among the members of a society to cooperate for social benefits, for example by sacrificing some individual freedom for state protection. Theories of a social contract became popular in the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries among theorists such as Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, as a means of explaining the origin of government and the obligations of subjects.

14) What is a biblical subtext in §12 ? He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance."

The language is Biblical and conjures up Old Testament images of "swarms" of flies and locusts covering the face of the earth, "so that the land was darkened," and devouring all they found until "there remained not any green thing in the trees, or in the herbs of the field"

3) Where was the text drafted ?

Thomas Jefferson drafted the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia. The Declaration of Independence printed and late on July 4, John Dunlap, a Philadelphia printer. After Jefferson wrote his first draft of the Declaration, the other members of the Declaration committee and the Continental Congress made 86 changes to Jefferson's draft, including shortening the overall length by more than a 14