The declaration of independence

The declaration of independence was a political statement that summarized the intention of the American nation to seek political freedom from the colonial masters, Great Britain. The Declaration of independence was initially drafted for Virginia, but other colonies joined in after they learned of the intention. The Congress adopted the statement of independence in the Second Continental Congress meeting at Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia. The declaration was signed by signed by Congress Representatives of Virginia, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New York and Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Delaware, Maryland, Georgia, North and South Carolina. These Congress Men were duly and democratically elected which meant that in whatever they drafted and signed it was endorsed by the electorate and they had the full support of the electorate. In drafting the declaration of independence, they demonstrated that their duty was to the people who elected them since the nature of the declaration was to benefit the colonies. The declaration was a response to the human, social, economic and political injustices that the Britain government was forcing on these American colonies.

From the declaration, the Congress Men stated that at times it is necessary that people separate themselves from the political bounds and stands on their own.  When humanity makes a decent opinion and declares the cause that gives rise to the idea, it ought to be respected. This means that these men were not acting on their advice but rather the opinion of their electorate who had given the mandate to represent them.  This declaration was partly directed to the residents of these colonies who were being exploited by the colonial master through payment of high taxes. The return states that all men were created equal and that and were given fundamental freedoms by the creator which includes the right to life, liberty happiness. The statement is an indication that the rhetor shares the same struggle with the intended audience which included high taxes as well the violation of basic human rights from the colonial master, Great Britain.

The declaration further states that in a bid to secure the rights of life, liberty happiness, governments derive their consent from the governed. When the government violates these rights, the governed has the right to abolish it and institute a new one. This statement showed that the, as well as the governed, were tired of the existing regime, that is, Great Britain. It was the rhetors as well as the audience intention to free themselves from the colonialist administration no matter the cost. They were looking forward to instituting a government under their principles and have its power organized in such a way as to their safety and happiness. The context of this address was to liberate the colonies from the British government. It was a formal address that was going to declare the freedom of the thirteen American colonies from Great Britain.

In the declaration, the rhetor emphasizes that the governments should not be changed for light reasons. The change should be fostered when humanity had been exposed to suffering under evils perpetrated by the sitting regime. The congress was sanctifying its intentions to its audience that it was not just driven by a want to be independent but by the suffering that the colonial government had inflicted on the audience.  It was also to set the standard high for any other state, among the United States of America that would want to set itself apart from the rest by fighting for its independence. The declaration states that when a government imposes a long train of abuses and subjects the citizens to suffering, then and only then is their right to throw off such government and put in place a new government that will guard off their future.

 The British Government had passed many tax laws that impacted negatively on the colonist and the colonies. The American colonies had no voice in the British government, and they believed that the congressmen were their only hope in changing things around. The colonies had patiently endured such suffering, and it was their time to institute a new government that will safeguard their interests. The rhetor continues to outline all the atrocities that the colonial master has been subjecting them to. They included imposition of taxes, cutting off trade ties with the rest of the world, denying them an opportunity to pass their laws, made military superior to the civil power, quartering armed troops among Americans, taking away their charters, dissolving the Representative House for opposing their invasions and even preventing creation of jury that would determine cases locally instead of shipping Americans to face trial in England. The colonial master had constrained the captives to be the executors of fellow countrymen

The rhetor outlines that they have, at every stage of all these oppression petitioned the colonial master for redress which has only been answered by an insult every time.  Such a Prince, therefore, in the eyes of the Congress, had proved himself to be the tyrant is unfit to be a ruler of free people. The rhetor outlines to the audience of their effort to try and settle their differences with the colonial master in a civil way, but all the attempts have fallen into deaf ears. From the strong relationship of trust that existed between the rhetor and the audience, it helped in putting up a united front against the colonial master. The congress states the readiness of its electorates to use all means to liberate themselves from the hands of its colonial master including war. In the declaration, the Congress appeals to the Supreme Judge of the world to grant them freedom and independence and absolve them from any allegiance to the British government. They also request for the dissolution of all the political ties binding the two nations together. The declaration requests to be accorded rights to act and do all the things that independent states have the right to do which include war, peace declaration, commerce, and create alliances. This appeal shows that the rhetor had tried all peaceful means to reason with the colonial master but was still making a peaceful attempt to try and liberate itself even though they made it clear that they were ready for war.

The context of this declaration was to liberate the colonies from the British government. It was a formal statement drafted by one of the Congress that was going to declare the freedom of the thirteen American colonies from Great Britain. This was enforced by the ideas that all men are created equal; all men have fundamental human rights given to them by God. And that the only reason to have a government is to protect the fundamental human rights which Jefferson listed as Life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness. At the time of the address, the Americans believed that it was about the time that they gain their rights as human beings and as an independent nation from the British that had not only abused their human rights but also national rights and taking resources from them. The authors of the declaration of independence use the rhetorical appeals of Pathos, Ethos, and Logos to gain the approval of the colonized and have them agree with the decision to demand freedom from the British government. They used ethos by showing their audience where they stand on the argument of why the British government should be overthrown. They used Logos to logically prove their point that it was pointless to live under the British government while not having any political power nor any fundamental human rights.

The congressmen who signed the Declaration of independence were successful in accomplishing their purpose. Even though the declaration was not received and accepted by the colonial government, it was a good starting point of their journey to independence. The declaration of independence was the epitome of their success in the task that was given to them by the electorate. The declaration also formed the basis of unity among these states since they were granted independence on account of one nation. The declaration still forms the basic principles under which the American nation lies and it is the mark oh history which defines the birth of the American nation. 

This entry is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International license.