Harmonizing Sentiments : The Declaration of Independence and the Jeffersonian Idea of Self-Government

ISBN: 0820439614

Author: Eicholz, Hans L.

Condition: New

Harmonizing Sentiments: The Declaration of Independence and the Jeffersonian Idea of Self-Government introduces the reader to the major issues concerning Americas statement justifying independence. It covers the first controversy between loyalists and patriots, explores the documents intellectual sources, evaluates the degree to which the Declarations ideals were fulfilled or rejected by the Constitution, and concludes by investigating its current political and legal implications. Readers will be intrigued by the authors argument for approaching the Declaration with an understanding of eighteenth-century political economy and ideas about a natural social order. The importance of Jefferson as a conduit through which these ideas were expressed is defended against recent attempts to de-emphasize the centrality of the Declarations author. The work concludes that the Declarations focus upon the abuses of power is still relevant for understanding American political institutions.