We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain una
lienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. –That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men. –Declaration of Independence,
1776
The aim of all political association is the preservation of the natural and imprescriptible rights of man. These rights are liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression. –Declaration of the Rights of Man, 1789
Which idea is included in both documents?
Resistance to tyranny is a right.
Natural rights are given by God.
All men have natural rights.
The purpose of government is to protect natural rights.
The purpose of government is to protect natural rights.
Explanation:
The Scientific Revolution had shown that there are natural laws in place in the physical world and in the universe at large. Applying similar principles to matters like government and society, Enlightenment thinkers believed that using reason will guide us to the best ways to operate politically so we can create the most beneficial conditions for society. John Locke and other Enlightenment era thinkers wrote with strong conviction that all human beings have certain natural rights which are to be protected and preserved. Each individual's well-being (life, health, liberty, possessions) should be served by the way government and society are arranged.
The Declaration of Independence states these Enlightenment views on natural rights in this way:
<em>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.</em>
The Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen opens with this assertion:
<em>The representatives of the French people, organized as a National Assembly, believing that the ignorance, neglect, or contempt of the rights of man are the sole cause of public calamities and of the corruption of governments, have determined to set forth in a solemn declaration the natural, unalienable, and sacred rights of man, in order that this declaration, being constantly before all the members of the Social body, shall remind them continually of their rights and duties.</em>
The scapegoats—outsiders, immigrants, minorities, 'deviants'—are then persecuted, enabling the scapegoaters to discharge and distract from their negative feelings, which are replaced or overtaken by a crude but consoling sense of affirmation and self-righteous indignation.
