How Has The Thirteen United States Grown As A Society?

Essay by PaperNerd ContributorHigh School, 11th grade November 2001

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How has the Thirteen United States grown as a society? By declaring their independence to the King of England on July 4, 1776, the Thirteen United States of America showed that they no longer needed the British sovereignty and that no longer will they be under the King's wing. They were ready to fly, like every new born bird when it is ready to survive on its own. The thirteen states, over many many decades, had grown into an educated, matured, strong society that understood they didn't need and didn't have to put up with want a dictating sovereignty from England, which they couldn't tolerate at that time.

The King of England was a tyrant and didn't listened to their needs. Some of the many issues were the King of England had forbidden governors from passing important laws, legislative meetings were at far, uncomfortable and unusual places, officers from England harassed people in the colonies and ate their food, armies were among the people when there wasn't a war, trading with the world was forbidden, taxes were imposed without the people's consent, people were deprived of trial by jury, homes were burnt and lives of people were destroyed, and many more injustices.

With the wrongs done by the King, the thirteen states decided it was time and their right to separate from the British government. From their point of view, the government has power because it had the consent from people. But if the government was corrupted, representation of the people's security, property, and happiness wasn't shown, then the people had the right to demolished the government. The thirteen states believed that "all men were created equal, that they were endowed by their Creators with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." (pg 121) Similar to the states' view of government power was John Locke's theory of government authority (pg 64-75). He believed that everyone was born with "life, liberty, and property." No one can take away the freedom unless he or she had chosen to give it up for a certain cause, such as creating a government. A group of people must agree to give up some of their freedom so that the government would work. But the power must be spread so that no one would have absolute power. He also believed that people had the right to abolished the government if it wasn't what they wanted.

England was being destructive and people in the states were suffering, so the thirteen states had the right, because of "Laws of Nature and Nature's God" (pg 123), to abolished that government and replaced it with a new one. "A prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a tyrant is unfit to be the ruler of a free people." (pg 123) So, through the Declaration of Independence, the thirteen states apposed the British sovereignty as a grown, matured, educated, strong society. They believed men were created equal and they would no longer let a dictating sovereignty abused the power that the people had contently and consciously given up to the government. They realized that they can take away the power that they had willingly given to the King. With that knowledge, the states had gained courage and strength to stand up and defy a country ruled by a tyrant. With their sacred honors and values, the thirteen states, as a united country, were ready and willing to sacrificed their lives for "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." (pg 121)