Analysis Of Enlightenment By Immanuel Kant

Although the Declaration of Independence was written eight years before Immanuel Kant’s essay “What is Enlightenment,” both were built on the same principle of thinking independently and, moreover the courage to act without the guidance of others. From Kant’s perspective, he argues that the self inflicted lack of understanding comes from others opinion; therefore enlightenment is the courage to rely on one’s own reasoning and thought process, giving individuals the opportunity to think independently thus allowing a collection of original ideas and services necessary for a good society. However, what sets Jefferson’s version of enlightenment apart from Kant's? Based on Jefferson's Declaration of Independence enlightenment involves the following: