On the political side, everyone is free to reject, to revolute and simply to say no. Another aspect of freedom which the American Dream stresses is the freedom of religion as the early founders of the American society have suffered a lot from religious abuse. Freedom of religious beliefs is a basic right for everyone, and any difference in religion cannot be a reason for difference in the gained rights in society. As the American Dream has given great value to the individual, the freedom of expressing person’s opinion and thoughts has imposed itself. Individualism that the American Dream has believed in has made people believe that as they are free individuals everyone should have an opinion and it must at least be heard and respected.
Some rhetorical devices Jefferson uses are so subtle that the average reader does not recognize them as obvious forms of rhetoric. The audience is only left with the powerful message that he intended to convey. Alliteration, one of the simplest devices he uses is fairly subtle yet effective in creating mood or tone through out the Declaration. In breaking down the phrase “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness,” the words “Life” and “Liberty” sort of roll off the tongue together. This could be applied to make a point that life and liberty are one in the same; that with life comes a given freedom, and the right to pursue ones own happiness is branched under that freedom.
“Thus your hearts be enlarged with kindness and benevolence towards them, and thus shall you need neither the direction of myself or others, in what manner to proceed herein.” This is one of the sentences Banneker uses in his letter to Jefferson. The word benevolence stuck out to me because it was so unfamiliar. Once I had familiarized myself with the term, benevolence means, a desire to do good to others; goodwill or charitableness. Another word that happens to stand out o me would be abhorrence. This is a feeling of extreme repugnance (hatred, hostility, etc.)
Response to Bulosan, Roth and Erdrich It is impossible to define what it means to be “American” in one simple term. America is sometimes said to be the land of opportunity, the land of freedom, a place where everyone is free to live without judgment or persecution. Many have found that this assumption about America is incorrect. Many have found that America is littered with struggles and hypocrisy. Maybe what it really means to be an “American” is to accept the fact that America is a country full of contradictions and ironies, and instead of chasing perfection, one must simply accept the good with the bad.
Starting with the much-revered English Constitution, Paine presents it as outdated and convoluted. Paine’s largest grievance, however, is with the entire concept of an absolute monarchy, claiming it to be against both nature and scripture. In quoting the scriptures, Paine is able to justify pursuing American Independence and the struggle for a Republic by presenting monarchical rule as ungodly. The exaltation and ‘worship’ of one man above others is, in Paine’s opinion, an ‘idolatrous custom of the Heathens’ and in contradiction to the Bible. Paine also states that hereditary succession inevitably opens the door to the foolish and the wicked and so must be oppressive in its
Conversely, this satirical tone creates the feeling that society has in fact subverted itself in an attempt to gain net value. This is particularly evident in his comparison of an American tourist to that of an English, which relatively says very little about each person, except for their place of habitation. When we displace the idea of nationality, although it is important, it becomes clear that all human beings share
The Declaration of Independence is one of the greatest political documents in history due to its powerful and distinctive combination of universal principles and also an abstract theory of government. The Declaration of Independence had a huge effect on the U.S, it confirmed the United States free from Britain rule, it united the North and the South since at the time America was divided in two because of the American Civil War, and it expressed the basic principles on which the U.S government should be based off of. America was instituted on the First Principle that the safety of unalienable rights is the legitimate purpose of government, and that government ought to be limited so that it cannot rule over the people of its country. The Declaration
Revolutionary Americans resented the economic restrictions, finding them exploitative. They claimed the policy restricted colonial trade and industry and raised the cost of many consumer goods. In his 1774 pamphlet, "A Summary View of the Rights of British America, " Thomas Jefferson asserted the Navigation Acts had infringed upon the colonists' freedom in preventing the "exercise of free trade with all parts of the world, possessed by the American colonists, as of natural right." Yet, as O. M. Dickerson points out, it is difficult to find opposition to the mercantile system among the colonists when the measures were purely regulatory and did not levy a tax on them. The British mercantile system did after all allow for colonial monopoly over certain markets such as tobacco, and not only encouraged, but with its 1660 regulation was instrumental in, the development of colonial shipbuilding.
A long thing said short; I’m an American by blood, but not by mind. Everyone around there is completely brainwashed, living for the enthusiasm of accomplishing goal after goal. They say America is the land of possibilities and freedom. Well that is seemingly true, except the limit comes right after accomplishing the goal, when people have already moved on, or have been programmed to move on,
But what is being an American? Is it only to have the freedom to express yourself? The answer is clearly no. Along with every rose, comes it's thorns. Along with our freedom comes many negative things also.