Comparative analysis - American Declaration of Independence
1) So apt and eloquent was Thomas Jefferson’s expressive writing in the Declaration of Independence that many others have come to use his document as a template for iterating declaratory appeals of their own. In the case of The Declaration of Sentiments, Elizabeth Cady Stanton is seen to use Jefferson’s declaration as both inspiration, and archetype for her own declaration in opposition of the “repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman.” Stanton surely made use of the recognition, and authority which the Declaration of Independence held, during the creation of her preamble. Stanton continued in her writing to include a list of grievances which, while similar in wording and structure to Jefferson’s grievances, expressed a much different intent. The two documents differ here, as the original Declaration of Independence demonstrates how the freedom and integrity of men was denied by the transgressions of their king, while the Declaration of Sentiments demonstrates how the freedom and integrity of women, is denied by men.
To better create a sense of sympathy for the plight of woman-kind, and to bridge empathy between women and the rest of the American public, Elizabeth Cady Stanton carefully emulated the wording and style of the Declaration of Independence. Thomas Jefferson wrote, “We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal.” Elizabeth Cady Stanton edited this same sentence to say that “all men and women are created equal”. Whereas the Declaration of Independence outlines the “patient sufferance of the colonies”, the Declaration of Sentiments outlines the “patient sufferance of women under this government.” The Declaration of Independence aims its grievances at the King of England and addresses him by saying things such as “He has obstructed the Administration of Justice” and