Great Works of Literature II

The Declaration of Independence has undeniably had a profound impact on how our lives today and the freedoms we are able to enjoy. For instance, we cannot be punished for expressing our freedom of speech, freedom to assemble, ability to vote for our country’s leaders, choose marriageable partners, decide whether or not to get an education and so forth. Essentially, the way we lead our lives is chosen by us and only us a lone. This essential document thus laid the foundation for a society that would allow its citizens to enjoy their “inalienable rights”, which are those rights that cannot be taken away by a higher authority such as the government.

While it is true that we enjoy such rights today, the same cannot be said for all the different eras up until this point since the passing of the document. Racism and subordination of minorities was strong in this country, and fueled many tensions among various groups. Thus these inalienable rights were not ensured for all citizens except for white males, underestimating the powerful statements made in the declaration. If all men were created equal, then how come African Americans were forced to labor on cotton fields, while white males controlled the decisions and policies of the country? How come women were denied the opportunity to go to college? This document, though brilliant, was still never the idealistic method by which the country was run. And the same could still be said for today’s society. While we have moved much closer towards following all of its guidelines and principles, racist attitudes and gender inequality (particularly in the workplace) continue to have an undeniable presence in our society. And it seems as though it will continue on this way for many years to come.

I find the U.S Declaration of Independence and constitutions absolutely fascinating documents.  One of the things that I find so interesting is that these documents are considered “living works.”  This to me is a rather odd term to describe an inanimate object but when thinking about these documents, they are.  Still to this day the declaration and constitution are relevant and still debated.  Its amazing how issues that were discussed then are still being discussed and debated to this day.

Another thing I find quite interesting is the huge risk that the founder fathers of our nation had to take.  Essentially a major reason for the writing of the Declaration was unfair taxation from Great Britain.  If this is grounds for a revolt, will it ever get to a point where in our society they separation of wealth will be so great that it would be grounds for such extreme measures? Have we seen any sort of measures already?

universal declaration of human rights

I have heard about the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen a lot when I was studying world history in high school. We were taught declaration of the rights of man and of the citizen have great impact on the human history; it’s a milestone of the human race. But we never took a close reading of them; so that was almost everything I know about this declaration and I did not have much emotions about it.

As I proceed reading the declaration of the rights of man and of the citizen, I realized the clauses are thorough. They cover almost every aspect of the human rights and in what way should the law be established.  

For example, “Every citizen has a right to participate personally, or through his representative, in its foundation. It must be the same for all, whether it protects or punishes. All citizens, being equal in the eyes of the law, are equally eligible to all dignities and to all public positions and occupations, according to their abilities, and without distinction except that of their virtues and talents.”

It also defines what one should do and should not do. “Liberty consists in the freedom to do everything which injures no one else; hence the exercise of the natural rights of each man has no limits except those which assure to the other members of the society the enjoyment of the same rights. These limits can only be determined by law.”

The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen sets the most ideal social structure; which many people dreamt about it before and many people now are still hoping they could live in the society like that. For your instance, I wish the Communist Party in China could employ some of the clauses, or at least employ the freedom of speech, thus the huge amount of corruption will be disclosed to the public and I could go back without hesitation.

After reading the U.S. Declaration of Independence, I feel that our society has forgotten the values, goals and responsibilities of our ideal nation. Every election, we have a Republican Party running for office, as well as a Democratic Party, with each side accusing the other of having poor solutions for whatever problem our government may be facing at the time. But for the most part, both campaigns usually agree on very similar issues. In our nation’s modern society, the idea is that everyone is equal, and everyone has an equal right to opportunity. However, some citizens in the lower class or middle class may not particularly believe that. People who have been denied health insurance or students having difficulty receiving student loans will advocate this belief.

The Declaration of Independence was established during a time when neither politicians nor specialists could predict how dramatic of an increase in our nation’s population would take place. With so many different organizations and institutions displaying different wants and needs, one could say it’s impossible to satisfy everyone at the same time. I feel slightly disheartened after reading the Declaration because the America the forefathers intended has become too idealistic and unattainable. With the population we have, it seems impossible to give everyone the liberty and opportunity they deserve without sacrificing that of someone else.

While reading this declaration,I feel very fortunate that I have the freedom I have today. This declaration of rights for people is truly a good thing to have. However, I do not think we have a lot of freedom in our world today, at least the rights we deserve to have. We are in a society where people like politicians are trying to take away our rights and freedom. The text states that political associations are supposed to preserve the rights of man. Yet we have people trying to take these rights away from us.

There are people out there trying to take away the rights of certain people by saying that they can’t do what they want with their own bodies. There are people that are being discriminated for being born the way they were, even though the Declaration clearly states that every man is born equal. I believe the society we live in today is losing more and more of its freedom and rights that shouldn’t have been gradually taken away in the first place. There are some people that are breaking laws that were established to keep the rights of society and their citizens, and they are trying to abuse the powers of politics for their own good.

The declaration of the right of man and of the citizen is one of the most important steps achieved in the purpose of the French revolution. However, I found the tittle of the declaration kind of bold. Why does it have to be the “the Right of men and of the Citizen” and not the right of the French man and of the French Citizens”? It is true that back in the 18^th century, the world looked at France as the place of the best civilization. The French art and music were highly admired by the world.  The declaration was constituted in consequence of the French people’s revolt, but not the revolt of the rest of the world. Why does the declaration of the right have to be universal and to be applied to the rest of the world?  And why aren’t the twenty seven amendments of the American constitution applied to everybody else?

The declaration was declared universally, but its benefits were only in favor of a portion of the world. France kept oppressing its African colonies and sucked out their properties and resources. According the first article of the declaration, France should have had attribute independence to all of its colonies. Yet these colonies had to shed blood for their freedom two hundred years later. Nowadays, is the declaration of the right of man and of the citizen really applied as it is supposed to be?

As I did the reading, I realized I had forgotten how hard people fought for the freedoms I take for granted everyday. I speak my mind and write my thoughts without worrying that I might be punished. Yet there was actually a time that doing so was unheard of. What I had forgotten most of all was how different life as a woman would have been back then. I can’t imagine how my life would be if I had to give everything I owned to my husband or if I did not have the right to education. That makes me thankful to see how far we’ve come as a country since then.

However, while women have more freedom now than they did in the time of Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, we are still not equal to men. We have made vast improvements yes, but but equality is still something we have to achieve. For example, women still face the struggle of being paid lower wages than men with whom she has the same qualifications. Or a woman’s reproductive rights aren’t solely her own, but a government issue and a political platform. I think that while, yes, improvements toward equality have been made worldwide, there is still a long way to go before everything and everyone is on an equal scale.