Thomas Jefferson

On April 13, 1943, on the 200th anniversary of Jefferson's birth, the Jefferson Memorial was dedicated in Washington, D.C. The interior within includes a 19 foot tall statue of Jefferson and engravings from Parts of his writings. The most outstanding are the words which are inscribed around the monument at the top: "I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man."

What is it about Thomas Jefferson that made us want to construct a monument after him? What compels us to look up to him. Why is it that so many see him as an inspiration? Even Mikhail Gorbechev, the former leader of the Soviet Union said that Jefferson had been one of his heroes as he had been growing up and attending university. Thomas Jefferson has truly left an impact on the people of the United States, and in this essay I want to answer what kind of an impact that was, I want to center more on the political impact Jefferson had while at the same time trying to uncover what it was that has made him such an inspiration to so many people.

As an agriculturalist, horticulturist, architect, archaeologist, mathematician, cryptographer, surveyor, author, lawyer, inventor, a violinist, the third President of the United States, author of the Declaration of Independence, and one of the most influential Founders of the United States, Jefferson did many things, and made a lot of changes to america. I want to start by giving a brief biography of Jefferson and looking at some of his influences and achievements. Then spend some time focusing on the Declaration of Independence. With that let's learn more about the life of Thomas Jefferson.

Thomas Jefferson was born on April 13, 1743 in Virginia, namely on a plantation his father owned in Albemarle county. When he was 9 years old Jefferson began going to a school run by a Scottish reverend by the name of William Douglas, there he was introduced to Latin, Greek and French which he would in his later years gain quite a mastery of, even though later he is said to have not been very impressed by reverend Douglas.

In 1757, when Jefferson was 14 years old his father died and upon his death he inherited his fathers land and his slaves. The death of his father was a big blow and in many ways it left Jefferson feeling responsible for his family. Jefferson's father also had a great influence on him; his father was a representative of the county of Albemarle in the House of Burgesses and impressed upon him a duty to ones country. His father was also self taught, he had no formal education but taught himself the art of surveying, even making a map of Virginia. He taught Jefferson the importance of learning and of books. Years later, the only thing that Jefferson ever wrote about his father was that "he studied much...he read much, he studied and he improved himself." As Jefferson grew the lessons he learned from his father would shape who he was.

After his fathers death Jefferson went to learn at the school of the learned reverend, James Maury, whom he later described as "a correct classical scholar." Not only did Jefferson receive a classical education there but also studied natural science and history.

Two years later at the age of 16 Jefferson entered the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, for two years he studied mathmatics, physics and philosophy under the professor William Small, Jefferson was also introduced to the writings of different philosophers like John Locke, and Sir Isaac Newton. It was also at this time that Jefferson was exposed to many different thoughts and ideas that were coming from Europe, what is called the Age of Enlightenment.

The Age of Enlightenment refers mainly to the 18th century in european philosophy and is typically included in what was called the age of reason, it was a time where people were taking much of the scientific and philosophical discoveries of the past and attempted to use it to understand and explain the world around them. Rationality was used as a means to understand and establish systems of ethics and knowledge, Rationalism was a way of thinking that was a big part of this age. Rationalism is a philosophical doctrine that asserts that the truth can best be discovered by reason and factual analysis, rather than faith, dogma or religious teaching. The main players of this age of reason believed themselves to be moving the world, and the way the world thinks, forward towards progress and growth and out of the superstitions and control over thought that prevailed before this time during what was called the Dark Ages.

There is no doubt that Jeffersons exposure to these new ways of thinking as well as the art, music, and literature of this period of time had a huge impact on him, what he learned in the two years he studied at the university was the beginnings of not only a personal philosophical outlook but also a duty to concepts like liberty and free thinking. Combine this with the lessons he learned from his father growing up and the politcal climate of the time in the colonies,especially as time went on, and we can see how the pieces fit together in Jeffersons life to Drive him to be who he was in american history.

Thomas Jefferson married in 1772 to Martha Wayles Skelton, a widow. They had six children. Martha Wayles Skelton died September 6, 1782, and Thomas Jefferson never remarried.

In May 1769 he was elected a member of the House of Burgesses in Virginia, as he continued to be until the House ceased to function in 1775, The House of Burgesses was the lower house of the Colony of Virginia. It was the first elected legislative assembly in the New World. Over time the name came to represent the entire official legislative body of the Colony of Virginia.

Jefferson was never known for his public speaking, he appeared to dislike it and even when he became president later on he would send written letters to be read in congress instead of going and speaking himself, this even includes the state of the union! Jefferson offered his pen to the cause of government since his skills as a literary draftsman were easy to see. He wrote many documents, much of these were very strong and somewhat hostile towards Britain at the time so very few were realistically considered at the time. Jefferson was on the side of the more aggressive anti British groups, and inn 1774, he wrote A Summary View of the Rights of British America which was intended as instructions for the Virginia delegates to a national congress. The pamphlet was a strong argument of American terms for a settlement with Britain and all the problems they were beginning to have with them, it helped speed the way to independence and revolution, and it also revealed Jefferson as one of the most thoughtful and influential patriot spokesmen. This document proved to be his greatest literary contribution