Preview

Thomas Aquinas And Jean Jacques Rousseau: An Analysis

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1937 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Thomas Aquinas And Jean Jacques Rousseau: An Analysis
To start off, the Declaration of Independence mentioned many issues that were addressed by both Thomas Aquinas and Jean Jacques Rousseau, and especially by John Locke. The Declaration of Independence text begins as: “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”. (Archives.gov, 2015) The Declaration of Independence and the Constitutions were revolutionary for their time and sparked controversy in areas around the world. They led to monarchies collapsing(France) and to they still continue to be the building block as to how many democracies function today. With that being said, I …show more content…
politics is. I believe that John Locke fits the current status of laws that the United States has when it pertains to individual liberties. Thomas Aquinas focused more on morality of the people and the humanitarian type of policies and rulership whereas John Locke was more about liberty and freedom to advance oneself in life, as long as it was done legally. Thomas Aquinas also beats out Rosseau in my opinion for the best morals that aren’t overcontrolling of the populace. Rosseau is more like a socialist and that may work to a certain extent, but he tends to lack in the area of personal accountability, even without the threat of punishment. Thomas Aquinas focuses more on acting in a good, moral, and just way regardless of the social policies in place. John Locke’s beliefs would represent the current system far much more than either of the other two philosophers. I think that John Locke’s theories and beliefs are much more valid as it relates to U.S. policies when compared to those of Thomas Aquinas and Jean Jacques Rousseau because of the strong individual liberty beliefs, the idea of a consumer based ran market, and the right to own property such as land at high
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Declaration Of Independence Rhetorical Analysis Essay
    • 920 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Declaration Of Independence Rhetorical Analysis Essay

    “The Declaration of Independence” paved the way for freedom in the United States. It rejected ruling from Great Britain, and made America its own country. The document was written by Thomas Jefferson, a delegate of the Second Continental Congress. The cause was the colonists being tired of the King taking their rights away, so they decided to withdraw from Great Britain and become their own free country. Their feelings are expressed in The Declaration when the tone portrayed was critical and straightforward. The Declaration was important in the style it contained which is the reason it was successful.…

    • 920 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Philosopher Thomas Rousseau Analysis
    • 414 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Philosopher Thomas Rousseau Analysis

    In the article that I read Philosopher Thomas Hobbes believed that people must surrender their freedom to a ruler. In the article, french philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau states that people should come together in societies and the solution was to form a social contract with general will or the common good.…

    • 414 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Fallacious Arguments in the Declaration of Independence
    • 575 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Fallacious Arguments in the Declaration of Independence

    The Declaration of Independence is among the most profoundly interpreted and fiercely discussed documents in modern history. Most likely because of its rhetorical style and numerous fallacious arguments that are found. The colonists' use of persuasion to influence by using repetition to achieve their means. The Declaration of Independence is what 56 colonists saw as a logical course of action. What you must ask yourself is: What was considered logical in 1776?…

    • 575 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Individual Liberties In The Declaration Of Independence
    • 242 Words
    • 1 Page

    Individual Liberties In The Declaration Of Independence

    The Declaration of Independence extends the democratic ideal of Individual liberties/ rights in the U.S in 1776. Individual liberties/ rights are important to extend the idea of equal rights to everyone. Rights that belong to each person, such as life, liberty, and property and cannot be taken away without due process. In other words, Individual liberties/ rights ensure that the government cannot take people's natural rights away without the law being involved. The issuance of the Declaration of Independence forces the government to not make their own laws or religion without the people knowing.…

    • 242 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    3 Parts Of The Declaration Of Independence
    • 113 Words
    • 1 Page

    3 Parts Of The Declaration Of Independence

    The Declaration of Independence was written to forbid Great Britain’s King George III to enforce his strict laws and outrageous taxes. They needed to gain freedom from him. This document was approved by the Continental Congress on July 4th 1776. This document was written by Thomas Jefferson and was made into 3 parts. The first part has an introduction and why the declaration was written in the first place. Then the second part has to do with how the king violated the people’s rights and wasn’t a good king at all. Lastly the third part is the actual Declaration of Independence and how the colonies were renamed as the United States of America.…

    • 113 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Similarities Between The Declaration Of Independence And The Constitution
    • 120 Words
    • 1 Page

    Similarities Between The Declaration Of Independence And The Constitution

    The authors of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution portrayed their pure ideals for America. The Declaration of Independence’s foundation was strongly influenced by Locke’s ideals and the concept of the social contract. This idea that the governed will be governed by a government that they accept that protects their natural rights. “They are endowed by the Creator with certain unalienable rights, … life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”. This idea that all humans deserved to be on this earth as much as the next one was a new idea brought up during the enlightenment, and not commonly supported by the monarchical system. These principles were very “pure” however put into to practice they became tainted by…

    • 120 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Declaration of Independence, and the Constitution
    • 1779 Words
    • 8 Pages

    The Declaration of Independence, and the Constitution

    The Declaration of Independence Primarily was drafted by the founding fathers as a formal declaration to the Colonies as well as the British Monarchy that they were absolving, and becoming Free & Independent States. The Declaration of Independence also outlines the many injustices that the King of Great Britain had been doing such ad cutting off trade to other parts of the world, obstructing the administration of justice, forcing the colonies to quarter the King’s Armies, and imposing taxes on the Colonies without consent. The Declaration of Independence then goes on to state that the Colonies have the full power to levy war, conclude peace, contract Alliances, establish commerce, ad do all that an independent state would do.…

    • 1779 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Response to: the Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen United State of America
    • 731 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Response to: the Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen United State of America

    The Declaration of Independence was written as a means of telling the felonious abuses of King George III to the world as a jury. The problem of this statement is in the matter of a question: what law was to be used? Compounded on that it could not be English law because that was what the declaration was separating from. Any other countries laws would not have authority. So, Mr. Thomas Jefferson used John Locke's Natural Law. Natural Law is the rights of all individuals, regardless of nationality, and is older than any government opinions, and is unbiased to the declaration of independence and any other authority.…

    • 731 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Arguments In The Declaration Of Independence
    • 291 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The Arguments In The Declaration Of Independence

    The Declaration of Independence was very much a way for the colonists to air some of their particular grievances with British rule. The different complaints that are represented in the Declaration of Independence are also very valid in terms of what they were dealing with, and these are the key reasons that this document was written in the first place. When looking at the arguments in the Declaration of Independence, these arguments have one key theme: the tyrannical rule of the British king. This rule is represented through statements such as, “He has refused to pass other laws for the accommodations of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of representation in the legislature…,” and “He has made judges…

    • 291 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Principles Of The Declaration Of Independence
    • 413 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Principles Of The Declaration Of Independence

    The Founding Fathers had an idea to set an example for the future of their country. The Declaration of Independence sets forth the Founders’ beliefs about the purposes of government, why the colonies should rebel against Great Britain, the complaints against the British king, and statements that the relationship between Great Britain and the colonies is demolished. The document also gives us reasons why the Declaration give for independence, such as that all men are created equal, all men are given with certain unalienable rights, and that people have the right to abolish the government. These were the principles of the U.S. The Declaration of Independence helped shape the principles of the United States such as the citizens’ unalienable rights…

    • 413 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Declaration of Independence Paragraph
    • 312 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Declaration of Independence Paragraph

    The Declaration of Independence was a revolutionary piece of writing that impacted the whole world for decades after it was written, by starting a chain of angry citizens overthrowing unjust governments. But the elements that made it so different and revolutionary were not thought up all at the time; many of the ideas put into the Declaration had been envisioned by a wide variety of thinkers during the Enlightenment. The Declaration of Independence reflects many aspects of Enlightenment philosophy. Jean-Jacques Rousseau, for example, believed a direct democracy was the best government because it protected people’s rights. He felt that a government’s power was granted by the citizens who lived under it. The Declaration uses this notion several times, including in the quote, “governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed”. Another philosopher who contributed to the ideas in the Declaration of Independence was John Locke. He was the first to consider the idea of natural rights. He believed every person was entitled to life, liberty and property. The Declaration of Independence uses this idea that every person is endowed “with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”, as a main argument, because they felt that colonists, citizens of a colony of England, were not given these rights, or even the same rights as citizens of England. Also John Locke believed that unfair governments should be overthrown, and that it was the responsibility of the citizens to rebel if the government wasn’t protecting the rights of the people. The Declaration echoes this several times to justify their unhappiness with British rule. Clearly, the Enlightenment thinkers played a large role in the development of the ideas in the Declaration of Independence and in the American…

    • 312 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Importance Of The Declaration Of Independence
    • 58 Words
    • 1 Page

    Importance Of The Declaration Of Independence

    The Declaration of Independence was very much a way for the colonists to air some of their particular grievances with British rule. The different complaints that are represented in the Declaration are also very valid in terms of what they were dealing with, and these are the key reason that this document was written in the first place.…

    • 58 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Declaration Of Independence Grievances
    • 930 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The Declaration Of Independence Grievances

    The Declaration of Independence is one of the most important documents in American history. This document, written by Thomas Jefferson and the colonists, was their explanation for why they were unhappy with the way things were going in England at the time and how they planned on fixing it. It was written to be persuasive and to get the reader, King George III and his government, to understand why they felt the way they did. His argument was very effective because of the way he set up this document, which was into five different parts: the introduction, the preamble, the grievances, the body and the conclusion. These parts built off each other and made it an overall persuasive document that got the colonists what they wanted, which was their…

    • 930 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    American Democracy: the Preamble of the Constitution
    • 543 Words
    • 3 Pages

    American Democracy: the Preamble of the Constitution

    I believe the Constitution was such a great document necessary for achieving American Democracy. This document was very concise in its expressed powers. In the words of James Madison, "If men were angels, no government would be necessary." This was from Federalist #51 and states the only way government wouldn't be needed is if we all were perfect angels and we wouldn't need rules. The Declaration of Independence means to me that all men and women join freely together to make…

    • 543 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Declaration Of Independence
    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Declaration Of Independence

    We can all agree that the Declaration of Independence is one of the most important documents in The United States. The declaration to most people is a symbol of independence from the tyrannical government of Great Britain at the time. But the declaration is more than that, it is a document of our nation's belief and the government's relationship with its citizens. Although all the ideas on the Declaration of Independence are important, The ideas i feel are the most important are the alter or abolish of government, consent of the governed, equality and the most important to me is the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.…

    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics