Meredith Craig (H01)
Quiz:
1. (True/ False) Thomas Jefferson is seen by academics as a genuine philosopher?
2. What did Thomas Jefferson study after he stopped studying under the clergymen?
3. In the House of Burgesses, Thomas Jefferson experienced perhaps his first what?
4. What freedoms did Thomas Jefferson see as inalienable rights?
5. What two groups did Thomas Jefferson treat in a way that was less than equal?
Discussion Questions:
1. Could Thomas Jefferson have been a true proponent of equality if he still engaged in owning slaves?
2. How do you react to the quote “Equal rights for all, special privileges for none?” Does everyone deserve equal rights? Does anyone deserve special privileges?
Many scholars and academics do not consider Thomas Jefferson to be a true philosopher, “perhaps because he never wrote a formal philosophical treatise.” However, as citizens of America, the philosophy of the man who wrote our Declaration of Independence should be certainly be studied, as it affected and shaped our founding documents. Not only is it relevant to Americans to study Thomas Jefferson, it is relevant to philosophers as he was a man who spoke on many different philosophical planes and was influenced heavily by many other philosophers in his writings. Not to mention he was the president of the American Philosophical Society for nearly two decades.
Jefferson began his education studying under Clergymen, or leaders in the church and religious thought, then became a law student. This background in law eventually helped him to become a Delegate of the House of Burgesses, where he felt everyone was too keen on living under the rule of England. Perhaps the beginning of his revolutionary thought. He then began work on a document that would shake America’s history: the Declaration of Independence. This document outlined natural rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness as key features.
Thomas Jefferson maintained that all men are created and born equal as a paramount source of his philosophy. Perhaps the most emphasized point of philosophical thought he would ever make. This was a principle that was borrowed from John Locke, who Jefferson was influenced by. However, he did not stand for the equal treatment of everyone, particularly women and African Americans (as he was a slave owner), though he believed they are equal creations. In essence, everyone was equal in theory, but in practice, Jefferson did not hold the same principle of equality to be true. For example, not only did Thomas Jefferson continue to be a slave owner, he also did not find it appropriate for women to vote, since they had no place discussing politics. Therefore, the credibility of Jefferson’s belief that all people are equal could be contested, since his were not even remotely indicative of his philosophy.
Additionally, Thomas Jefferson had a strong aversion to big federal government. Consequently, many people have debated whether or not Thomas Jefferson would be pleased with the spending and power of the America of today. While the size of the American government has grown, I certainly do not think that as all of the changes have occurred, Thomas Jefferson would have expected America to stick firmly to his thinking ideals. Generally, while I do think he would be displeased, he did, after all, believe we, the people, have a right to revolution and creating a government we see fit.
Coincidentally, you reported on the anniversary of the day when Jefferson made that bold revolutionary statement we noted:
ReplyDeleteIt was on this day in 1787 that Thomas Jefferson (books by this author) said, “The Tree of Liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure.”
There was a big uprising of small farmers going on in central Massachusetts at the time, an event known as Shays’ Rebellion. They were rebelling because their farms were being foreclosed and repossessed by wealthy urban bankers, who were in debt to European creditors. Countries like France had lent money to America while it was fighting its Revolutionary War against Britain the past decade — and now they wanted to be paid back, in gold and silver. Banks could not gather the money they needed fast enough, so they started trying to make thousands of small farmers pay up at once on their farm and house mortgages. The farmers could not manage to do so, of course, and so the lenders confiscated their lands. They used the powers of the local courthouses to enforce the seizure of property.
Angry and indignant farmers in Springfield, Massachusetts, tried to occupy the local courthouse to prevent it from processing repossessions. And so the government prepared a militia full of soldiers to guard the courthouse; some war heroes from the Revolutionary War even came out of retirement to help lead the militia, which was financed by Boston merchants and sent in by the government of Massachusetts. But a man by the name of Daniel Shays decided that he’d lead a band of rebel farmers to the courthouse, and get there before the militia sent from Boston could. His farmers didn’t have any weapons, so they planned to raid the Springfield Armory along with way and pick up guns to fight with.
It turns out that the government’s militia was short on weapons too, and also had plans to stop at the armory. And the militia got to the armory first, and was waiting when Shays’ band of untrained men arrived. The militia general ordered that a warning shot be fired. Two cannons rang out, and they killed four of Shays’ rebels and wounded another 20. The rebels fled, were captured in about a week and imprisoned, fined, or condemned to death, though most were granted amnesty the following year.
Thomas Jefferson was in France when this happened; he was serving as the U.S. ambassador there. George Washington and the rest of federal government in the United States were very distressed by the rebellion, but Jefferson was far less worked up about it.
In addition to his fiery words about fertilizing the Tree of Liberty with the blood of patriots and tyrants, he wrote on this day in 1787: “God forbid that we should ever be 20 years without such a rebellion. … If [the people] remain quiet under such misconceptions it is a lethargy, the forerunner of death to the public liberty.” Writers Almanac
Could Thomas Jefferson have been a true proponent of equality if he still engaged in owning slaves?
ReplyDeleteI do not believe that Jefferson could have been a true proponent for equality because he owned slaves and reserved equality for the hands of a few rather than for all. I believe that Jefferson was more concerned with freedom from British control and equality in terms of power instead of equality for people.
Payton Hunt(H01)