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The Enlightenment was one of the most progressive times in terms of education and
philosophy since the Renaissance. The Enlightenment was a time of cutting-edge scientific
research such as the small pox vaccine and new philosophies such as Adam Smiths Invisible
Hand philosophy. During The Enlightenment, new ideas and scientific research was a staple of
everyday life and great minds were able to discuss in a comfortable setting of a salon. Due to the
unique perspectives that Paris, the heart of the Enlightenment, provided, when the United States
decided to separate itself from Britain many of the ideas of the Enlightenment philosophers had
can be seen in the government documents. Two government documents that Enlightenment
In the mid-1700s, relations between Britain and the thirteen colonies strained to an
Jefferson principally wrote the Declaration, the parallels between John Locke's ideas and the
Declaration are uncanny. The Declaration of Independence states, "...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." Although many future Americans did not fully
respect the natural rights that both John Locke and the Founding Fathers wrote about, the fact
that colonists were thinking about these rights is very promising for the time. With the
Declaration of Independence the Founding Fathers implanted the ideas of a free and just country.
John Locke believed in the principles that life, liberty, and property are natural rights that all
people deserve and hopefully his ideas will reach Americans now and for the rest of time.
After the American Revolution and the Treaty of Paris, the United States were an
independent nation but lacked an official law of the land. The Founding Fathers once again
looked to the philosophies of Enlightenment thinkers such as John Locke, Montesquieu, and Jean
Jacque Rousseau. Montesquieu believed in the separation of powers and check and balances that
go with it to ensure that not one branch of government is more powerful than any other branches.
In 1789 the Constitution became the supreme law of the United States beginning with its first
article. The Constitution states, "All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a
Congress of the United States..." The very first article in the Constitution began a long
explanation of what each branch of government is allowed to control. One branch would receive
a power and then another branch would receive a contradictory power in order to provide an
even and just allotment of power in the government. Another aspect of United States
government that is similar to Enlightenment philosophies is Jean Jacque Rousseau's idea that the
government should have some control but minimal. If not one working class citizen in the
United States worked for one day, many businesses would lose money and a lot of society would
come to a standstill. Many other countries could do just fine because of the involvement in the
economy and dictatorships that arise. Due to United States' acceptance of Rousseau's
philosophy, the citizens of the United States have a greater impact on society than if Britain still
ruled.
Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. John Locke was one of the most important
Enlightenment philosophers not just in Europe but also in the formation of the United States'
freedom. John Locke believed that life, liberty, and property are natural rights that all people
deserve and the United States Founding Fathers strongly believed in the same idea that all men
are created equal. The French Enlightenment philosopher Montesquieu provided the authors of
the Constitution with an idea that a separation of powers is needed for a successful government
in which no branch (Executive, Legislative, and Judicial) is more powerful than another. The
works and ideas of the most popular Enlightenment philosophers have provided a foundation in