Alex Stavrou
1/21/21
Ms. Dillard
A Modern Twist to Common
Sense
The colonists used the idea of
a social contract to explain
that the government should
rule justly by the people and
should not be able to violate
their rights for the sake of
power for people existing in
the leading of the
government. They used the
declaration of independence
to show that they should get
protection from the
government in exchange of
certain rights they give up.
The British government was
taking most of the rights if
not all from the colonists, so a
social contract was necessary.
The declaration of
independence was written by
the colonists to declare
independence from the
British monarchy. The
document was to outline the
problems the colonists were
experiencing due the reign of
Great Britain. It was
structured by first saying the
colonist’s beliefs and why
they deserved independence
from them, the list of
problems stemming from the
British government, and a
formal declaration declaring
independence in the end. The
document was an outline of
why the colonists deserved it,
and how the monarchy was
making it hard for them to
live in the colonies.
Natural rights are prevalent
everywhere or at least should
be. In the case of the
colonists, they felt they were
entitled to certain rights that
they felt were natural to all.
The drafting of the
declaration of independence
served as a way to let Great
Britain know there were
specific rights everyone
living should have, and to
highlight how Britain
deprived the colonists of
them. A few mentioned
specifically were the right to
life, liberty, property, and the
pursuit of happiness; all of
which Britain did a good job
The colonists had no popular
sovereignty or say in the
British government. They
used the declaration of
independence to show that
the government should serve
the people and not
themselves, as well as the
need to be able to elect who
they want in charge that can
properly represent them in the
government. The document
was the foundation describing
the colonists need to have
popular sovereignty as they
had no say in the British
parliament.
“…That to secure these
rights, Governments are
instituted among men,
deriving their just powers
from the consent of the
governed.” This quote
explains that the power of the
government should be
derived from the people.
Americans values that exist
today still stem from the
declaration of independence.
The political ideas of having
a ruler that represents the
people, elected by the people,
and the ruler providing them
natural rights is important in
society today. I would have
supported the Declaration of
Independence because It
embodies all things that were
necessary to break off from
the monarchy taking away
freedom. Freedom was the
start of this country and
should also last until the end.
I would have liked and
preferred to be free instead of
“When a long train of abuses
and usurpations, pursuing
invariably the same Object
evinces a design to reduce
them under absolute
Despotism, it is their right, it
is their duty, to throw off
such Government” This quote
explains that after long abuse
from the British government,
the people have the right to
usurp the British government
because they were not
properly exchanging the
freedoms a social contract
highlights.
at taking away. constantly under an
oppressive ruling.
“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.” This quote
was one of the times where
the colonists presented their
believed natural rights, and it
was important as this was in
the beginning of the
document.