Parmveer Ratth October 11, 2012

DBQ: The Enlightenment

The Enlightenment known by many as the Age of Reason was a turning point in history. Man people believe that without the Enlightenment, many of the laws, and rules would exist. For example the United States Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were greatly influenced by the Enlightenment. For example, John Locke, an Enlightenment thinker highly influenced the Declaration of Independence by stating that the natural rights of people include life, liberty and property except the founding fathers changed it by stating life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The …show more content…

This impacted the society because many people wanted natural rights and this statement influenced the society to establish a new type of government. It impacted the government because this statement told the government that if the people wanted to keep their property and other rights they would have to establish a new government meaning that the current government would have to change, so the government would be concerned.
Another example of an impact on both government and society is shown in Document # 6, an excerpt from the Declaration of Independence. It states, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, 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.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such