Preview

Thomas Jefferson Argumentative Paper

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
633 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Thomas Jefferson Argumentative Paper
Thomas Jefferson Argumentative Paper Thomas Jefferson had many talents and knowledge, he was very wise. Thomas was a man of his time but at the same time he was hypocrite. He believed in the abolishment of slavery yet owned slaves. He believed that there should never be any interracial marriage yet he had relations with a slave woman. He also believed that whites were the superior race yet he praised the Native Americans. Thomas Jefferson had many accomplishments but that doesn’t overshadow the fact that he was a hypocrite. He believed that slavery shouldn’t be allowed but he didn’t do anything about it. Thomas Jefferson actually owned slaves with the thought that slavery shouldn’t be continued. Thomas Jefferson had many great achievements but his actions make him look like a hypocrite. Thomas Jefferson had many accomplishments but he is a hypocrite. Thomas Jefferson disagreed with the whole slavery ordeal yet he owned slaves. He didn’t make an effort to change people’s views on owning slaves. Thomas Jefferson had children with a slave by the name Sally Hemmings. She was seven – eighths white and one – eighth black. She had 6 children with Thomas Jefferson. He kept his children and treated them as slaves. He owned around 300 slaves at one point. He set his children and skilled workers as runaways so they can be free in the north. Thomas Jefferson set rewards for the captures of the runaway slaves. This symbolizes that although he freed the slaves they still weren’t totally free. He is a hypocrite for not believing in the ownage of slavery yet he beared slave children. Thomas Jefferson’s achievements do not overlook his actions which lead to him being a hypocrite. He believed whites were the superior race. He believed that whites had the power over everyone else. He also praised the Indians for many reasons. This shows that he isn’t sure who is superior over another. He also believed heavily that people should never intermarry yet he had relations and

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    with Alexander’s ways, but he stuck by his beliefs by showing his “enemy”, Thomas Jefferson,…

    • 1744 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Many historians regard Thomas Jefferson as one of the most influential men of the post-revolutionary period. Jefferson is perhaps most well known for his ideas regarding the new American governmental system. Many supporters backed Jefferson in his ideals and opinions regarding the central government during his delegate years, and even into his presidency. In 1796, Jefferson became the President of the U.S. Some believe that Thomas Jefferson was a hypocrite in that his ideals changed after being elected President. After being elected to the White House in 1796, Thomas Jefferson was able to maintain his earlier philosophy on government by upholding his beliefs on taxation power, states’ rights and, on the contrary, foreign affairs.…

    • 811 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    1. Thomas Jefferson was a hero because he wrote the declaration of Independence and made the Louisiana Purchase which doubled the size of the United States but he was a hypocrite because tried to make slavery illegal while owning 500 slaves.…

    • 291 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Thomas Jefferson was very anti-slavery throughout his life. Jefferson would call it “moral depravity” and a “hideous blot”, he believed slavery was one of the greatest threat to the American nation. He knew that slavery was contrary to the laws of nature, which states that every person has the right to personal liberty. Thomas Jefferson held indigenous people in good views, he saw them as subjects of intellectual curiosity and believed they were enemies in war. Thomas Jefferson’s lengthy public career during a formative time period granted him to shape the relations between the United States and the numerous Indian nations during the eighteenth and even the nineteenth centuries.…

    • 200 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Jefferson treated his slaves in a harsh manner. For instance, he “‘had [James Hubbard, a captured runaway slave,] severely flogged in the presence of his old companions’”(Takaki 56). Jefferson also punished slaves in “ter-rorem” to others and sold them away to slave traders, making it seem as though the slave got killed (Takaki 56). He instilled…

    • 2363 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Over time Jefferson’s views on government and race drastically changed, from outright denouncing slavery as morally incorrect to endorsing the expansion of slavery in the west, Jefferson due to various reasons had fluctuating views on issues such as equality of races and governmental structure, primarily because of economic, social, and geographic causes.…

    • 661 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    With the Union being formed it was unnecessary for slavery to continue. With slavery being abolished, it would have paved the possibility that every man could become whatever he wanted, accomplish whatever dreams and goals he had. Albeit this, the moment the Constitution was written to protect the institution of slavery, it had retracted the claim that the United States of America was just. I also agree with John Hope Franklin that you can not have one and maintain the other. It is not very alluring to me on the case of Sally Hemings though, it seems to me that Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson had some sort of romantic or sexual relationship with each other. It bothers me that a man who would speak about freedom and liberty would subject one of slaves into a form of exploitation. Even though I know that it was quite common for slavemasters to use their slaves as they wish, it is odd to me that such a man who is regarded great by some people who result into slave exploitation, I find it ethically wrong in all…

    • 650 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Thomas Jefferson is one of the best known men in American history. He is remembered for his contributions to the Declaration of Independence and his presidency. He says in the Declaration that all men are created equal yet he owns around six hundred slaves and says otherwise in his book Notes on the State of Virginia. Jefferson clearly does not believe that African slaves or Indigenous Americans can be a part of American society because they are naturally barbaric.…

    • 804 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Thomas Jefferson through his life, his experiences have changed his view to suit what he believes is best for America. Jefferson grew up in a wealthy family and grew with a positive view of the people. He served as a Virginia delegate and as a Virginia state legislature member. Then, he was an author of the Declaration of Independence to create the new nation of America. Later, he became part of Washington’s cabinet as Secretary of State and served as a U.S. Minister to France. Through his political background, he grew skills to help hone his vision on how…

    • 616 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In fact, one of his major flaws was an unfortunate excellence in Hypocrisy. Although Jefferson was one of the main supporters of the anti-slavery movement, he was an avid slave-owner and slave-trader. It is surprising that voters did not see this as a negative trait in Jefferson, enough to the point to vote for the other of the candidates; it must have been Hamilton's strict interpretation of the current matters of the time that pushed voters away from Hamilton and toward Jefferson. While Jefferson was very against slavery, he also was involved in what is now called the ‘Sally Hemings Controversy'. Contained in this scandal is the question of whether or not Jefferson fathered any of Sally Hemings', one of Jefferson's slaves, children. Certain, later discovered, biological evidence would link Jefferson's Y-Chromosome to that of the child(ren) in question. In any event, it is plain to see that Jefferson displayed blatant and ridiculous hypocrisy in that he was so against slavery, to the point where he put a bill that would abolish any new acquisition of slaves in the state of Virginia. At the same time, he had slaves of his own. And to top it all off, he fathered the children of one of his 180-odd slaves. Apparently, Jefferson was also excellent in…

    • 559 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Thomas Jefferson among others shined light on his education in law. When he conjured up the Declaration of Independence. Jefferson used natural rights and religious liberty to enlighten people as he wrote the Declaration. Jefferson presented Americans as self-governing people that “All men are created equal”. Through his importance on equality, Jefferson didn’t agree on slavery and believed that people enslaved were deprived. His views were that all people were equal and his humanism views were not like his other counterparties. Jefferson’s views on the issue was in good remarks however, there was no mention on the equality of slavery or even blacks. This one-sided issue makes you question this truth. Because in fact more than a fifth of the…

    • 219 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The primary writer of the Declaration of Independance and one of the most prominent figures of the early history of America, Thomas Jefferson is one name that almost every American should have at least heard of by now. In the past, I have been taught that Thomas Jefferson was an abolitionist who believed that slavery was immoral, but his racism towards African Americans (and his idea of white superiority) was very surprising to me. He seemingly wants slavery to end (while owning many slaves himself) but also believes that, “It is not against experience to suppose, that different species of the same genus, or varieties of the same species, may possess different qualifications.” He states that African Americans are of a different species, and later remarks…

    • 1933 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The use of slavery to paradoxically define American freedom is first shown by the use of Jefferson, the “slaveholding spokesman of freedom”(Morgan). His attitude toward slavery can be shown in two ways. The first of which is debt. Debt is a force that can hold down any free man and this was why Jefferson hated debt so much. As a planter, he was basically forced into debt and resisted giving up his slaves until he found his freedom from that debt. He did not care about the freedom of his slavery as he did for his own. Jefferson also stated that a nation would be very fertile for tyranny if the men of a nation did not have enough land or money to support their families. This is paradoxical because the slaves live in a world of tyranny where the master is there monarch and the slave has no land or money to support their families. His second dislike was artisans. He stated that they lived dependent lives because they were dependent on the customer and had no other business or land to fall back on. Jefferson, on the other hand, liked farmers because they were very independent and always had a source of income. Jefferson states “the man who depended on another for his loving could never be truly free” (Morgan). This shows that Jefferson is willing to fight for the artisans who are dependent but does not want to forgo his slaves. Although freedom was rising for those who were dependent on others, the same dependent slaves had no improvements in liberty.…

    • 670 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Throughout our short time in this class we have been able look at many articles written by very influential people. The arguments they have presented have affected numerous people across the globe. By studying the works of Jefferson, Stanton, Wollstonecraft, and Woolf I have been able to see what makes an argument good vs what make an argument great. What makes an argument great or the best, is the authors ability to select the correct audience, use form to address that audience and ultimately have a lasting effect on the world. Although each of these authors present their arguments in an excellent manner, I believe that it is Jefferson who presents the best argument. There are three criteria which make Jefferson’s argument transcend above…

    • 2306 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    For example, everyone is aware that Adolph Hitler was responsible for the mass genocide that almost wiped out a culture, but what people have forgotten was that he legitimately thought that he was helping his country by exterminating the Jewish race. Much in the same way, in the wake of the Civil War and the Thirteenth Amendment, the South was quick to try and rid itself of the evils that blacks inherently brought with them. Southerners felt that Africans would corrupt America if not kept in check. Sometimes, even if one has remarkable beliefs, ones actions do not live up to expectations. Even Thomas Jefferson, a great founding father, could not make his actions as spectacular as his beliefs. While he may have coined the phrase “all men are created equal”, what history remembers was the fact that Jefferson’s actions didn’t live up to his beliefs (Jefferson 167). It’s hard to believe that Jefferson wanted equality for all people when he himself kept slaves. In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, articulates perfectly that it doesn’t matter what people think because “when it's a white man's word against a black man's, the white man always wins” (Lee 187). Not a single juror thought that Robinson was guilty, but rather than deal with the social ramifications of Mayella and Tom’s relationship they gave him the death penalty. Clearly, it doesn’t matter why one does what they do, the only thing that matters is what they actually…

    • 846 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays