Thomas Jefferson's Declaration of Independence: A Historical & Philosophical Appraisal - Paperback

by M. Andrew Holowchak (Author)

The Declaration of Independence is alive, because its sentences are crafted with elegance and concision-and the Congress much contributed to its concision-and because the author, not just the drafter, of the document captured things commonly known, yet profound, concerning human nature and human wellbeing. The Declaration of Independence, thus, is not just a proclamation to the world, of Americans' independence and of the reasons for it, but it is also, and most singularly, a moral document that grounds a rich and robust liberal political philosophy. The bedrock of that political philosophy, argues Holowchak, is human equality, not human liberty.