How the Enlightenment Influenced 18th and 19th Century Governments

In the 18^th and 19^th centuries, individuals like Thomas Jefferson, George Bancroft, and Frederick Douglass, and groups of individuals like the French National Assembly offered their visions of the ideal government. Even though these individuals (or group of individuals) came from different social classes, occupations, ethnic backgrounds, and nationalities, they all advocate for one specific type of government. That is, governments built on the foundation of the principles of the Enlightenment, particularly the principles of equality, freedom, and popular sovereignty. Their strong support for the Enlightenment principles is illuminated throughout their writings and/or speeches.

In the Declaration of Independence (1776), Jefferson claimed that everyone is equal and are entitled to certain rights, including the right to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness". Furthermore, if the government should ever fail to protect these rights, Jefferson believed that the people should be able to change or extinguish the government, for the power of the government rests in the people. Throughout the document, Jefferson utilizes the three major Enlightenment ideals to support his arguments. For one, Jefferson's claim that everyone is equal clearly resonates upon the Enlightenment ideal of equality, which stresses that people should be treated fairly regardless of who they are. In addition, in describing that people have certain rights which the government must protect, Jefferson is reflecting and expanding upon Locke's idea of "inalienable rights". With the exception of Locke's reference to property, Jefferson's allusion to the right to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" (1776) is very similar to John Locke's mention of the right to "life, liberty, and property"( Bentley & Ziegler 783). Nevertheless, Jefferson adopted Locke's idea of "inalienable rights" and slightly altered them, by removing the right to" property" and replacing it with "the pursuit of happiness" in order to better reflect American values. Furthermore, Jefferson also reflected on Locke's ideas of popular sovereignty and freedom in the Declaration of Independence by stating that the government derives its power from the people and if the people's rights are not being protected by the government, the people have the right to replace or change that government.

Like Thomas Jefferson, George Bancroft adopted the Enlightenment ideals of equality, freedom, and popular sovereignty in his vision of the ideal government. In his speech "The Office of the People in Art, Government, and Religion (1857)" he recognized the inequality between the aristocracy, who were often the policy-makers at the time, and the rest of society, who by large, did not have a voice in government. In doing so, he advocated for equality for the general public in the decision-making processes of the government as well as the overall freedom of expression for the general public. At the same time, he also adopted the Enlightenment ideal of popular sovereignty, by arguing that the happiness of the general public is the primary purpose of government, rather than the happiness of the aristocracy or the selected few.

Instead of arguing for the equality for the general public like Jefferson and Bancroft did, Frederick Douglass concentrated on equality for one specific population - the blacks, especially those who were slaves. In his speech "What to the Slave is the 4^th of July (1852)" Douglass recognized the mistreatment that blacks have endured as slaves, along with the fact that blacks are just as human as whites are, and thus, should be treated equally. He further commented on how American Independence Day may be a joyous day for whites to celebrate their freedom from Britain, but for blacks, it is a day that reminds them of the cruel treatments and lack of freedom that they have endured. In this speech, not only does Douglass call for equality for blacks, but also for their freedom from slavery. However, compared to Jefferson and Bancroft who mentioned the Enlightenment ideal of popular sovereignty, Douglass did not specifically address the issue of popular sovereignty nor argue for political rights for blacks; instead, he only concentrated on the fundamental rights of equality and freedom from slavery.

In the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen (National Assembly 177-179), the French National Assembly comprehensively described the ideal relationship between the people and the government as well as the rights to which all of the people of France should be entitled. In writing this document, the French Assembly heavily adopted and relied upon the Enlightenment ideals of equality, freedom, and popular sovereignty. First of all, the document started off by stating that everyone has certain natural rights that the government are obligated to protect, including the right to "liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression (National Assembly 177)". These rights clearly resemble Locke's idea of "inalienable rights" which included "life, liberty, and property (Bentley & Ziegler 783)". Furthermore, these rights are intertwined with the principles of equality, freedom, and popular sovereignty. These three principles are not only mentioned in the first few lines of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen (National Assembly), but are also alluded to throughout the rest of the document. For example, the principle of equality was utilized in bullet six, which sets forth that all citizens are equal before the law and thus, have equal opportunity in obtaining employment. Furthermore, several types of freedoms are mentioned in the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen; among them are freedom of religion (see bullet ten), expression (see bullet eleven), and property ownership (see bullet seventeen). The Enlightenment ideal of popular sovereignty was specifically alluded to in bullet six, in the lines, "Law is the expression of the general will. Every citizen has a right to participate personally, or through his representative, in its foundation (National Assembly 178)".

Even though the Enlightenment mainly occurred in Europe in the 18^th century, its ideas spread throughout the world, influencing the thinking of many people. Thomas Jefferson, George Bancroft, Frederick Douglass, and the French National Assembly are several parties, among many, who took advantage of the ideas that originated during the Enlightenment and used them to promote and influence changes in the societies that they lived in, primarily the governments and inequalities that existed at the time. These parties utilized the Enlightenment principles of equality, freedom, and popular sovereignty in their writing or speeches, in order to raise awareness about the inequalities in society. By examining the arguments of these parties, one will recognize that each of these parties have contributed to the dramatic improvements in their societies that will occur in the later future.

Works Cited

Bancroft, George. Literary and Historical Miscellanies. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1857,

408-435.

Bentley, Jerry H., and Herb F. Ziegler. Traditions and Encounters: A Global Perspective on

the Past. Vol. 2. 3^rd ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2006. 782-784.

Douglass, Frederick. "What to the Slave is Fourth of July?" In Narrative of the Life of Frederick

Douglass, David Blight, ed., 1852, 141-145.

Jefferson, Thomas. Declaration of Independence. 1776.

National Assembly. Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen. In Encounters in World

History: Sources and Themes from the Global Past. Vol. 2. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2006.

177-179.