America Declares Independence

Alan Dershowitz

Description

The Declaration of Independence as you've never seen it before

Some of us cherish it with near-scriptural reverence. Others simply take it for granted. In this contentious new look at the Declaration of Independence, however, celebrated attorney Alan Dershowitz takes "America's birth certificate" and its principal author, Thomas Jefferson, to task.

Dershowitz searches for the sources, history, and underlying reasoning that produced the Declaration and its particular language, from its reference to the "Laws of Nature and Nature's God" through the long list of complaints against the abuses of King George III. He points out contradictions within the document, notes how the meanings of Jefferson's words have changed over the centuries, and asks many disturbing questions, including:

• Where do rights come from?
• Do we have "unalienable rights"?
• Do rights to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" have any meaning?
• How could slaveowners claim to believe that "all men are created equal"?
• Is the God of the Declaration the God of the Bible?
• Does the Declaration establish a Christian State?
• Are there "Laws of Nature and of Nature's God"?

Challenging, upsetting, and controversial, this brilliant polemic may anger you, delight you, or force you to reexamine your opinions. One thing's for sure: after reading America Declares Independence, you'll never take the Declaration of Independence for granted again.
Acknowledgments.

Introduction.

Chapter 1. Who is the God of the Declaration?

Chapter 2. What Are "The Laws of Nature and Nature's God"?

Chapter 3. How Can Jefferson's Views of Equality and Slavery Be Reconciled?

Conclusion.

Appendix: The Declaration of Independence.

Notes.

Index.

Sujets

• Revolutionary Periode
• Histoire
• Turning Points of History
• 18th century
• United States
• Alan Dershowitz
• History

Informations

• Publié par: Turner Publishing Company
• Date de parution: 21 avril 2008
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780470303245
• Langue: English

Extrait

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America Declares Independence
A LAN D ERSHOWITZ

John Wiley Sons, Inc.
Copyright 2003 by Alan Dershowitz. All rights reserved
Published by John Wiley Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey Published simultaneously in Canada
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Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and the author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other damages.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Dershowitz, Alan M.
America declares independence / Alan Dershowitz.
p. cm.
ISBN 0-471-26482-2
1. United States. Declaration of Independence. 2. Jefferson, Thomas, 1743-1826-Political and social views. 3. United States. Declaration of Independence-Criticism, Textual. I. Title.
E221 .D47 2003
973.3 13-dc21
2002152554
Printed in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
This book is lovingly dedicated to my dear departed friends and colleagues Stephen J. Gould and Robert Nozick, with whom I taught together for so many years and on whose intellectual influences I will always be dependent.
Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction

1. Who Is the God of the Declaration?

2. What Are the Laws of Nature and of Nature s God ?

3. How Can Jefferson s Views of Equality and Slavery Be Reconciled?

Conclusion
Appendix: The Declaration of Independence
Notes
Index
Acknowledgments
My declaration of dependence on those without whom this book could not have been written includes Eric Citron, who helped me with the historical research; Jane Wagner, who organized my office and typed the manuscript flawlessly; Hana Lane, my editor, who provided excellent editorial input; Helen Rees, my always innovative and caring agent; my family who, as usual, read the manuscript and told me what was wrong with it, and occasionally even what was right with it; and my friends Jeffrey Epstein, Michael and Jackie Halbreich, Stephen Kosslyn, and Rick Paterson for their warm support and inspired suggestions.
Introduction
American independence from Great Britain was achieved on the battlefield, but the establishment of a new republic, conceived in liberty, was as much a product of the pen as the sword. As Thomas Paine, whose own pen contributed to the willingness of colonial Americans to take up the sword, wrote several years after the American Revolution: [T]he independence of America, considered merely as a separation from England, would have been a matter of but little importance. It became an event worthy of celebration because it was accompanied by a revolution in the principles and practice of governments.
This book is about the revolution in principles wrought by the pens of American statesmen, rather than the revolution won by the swords and flintlocks of American patriots. Although it is difficult, as a historical matter, to separate the two, my focus will be on the words and ideas used to justify the revolution, and their enduring impact on the Course of human Events, most particularly the rights of men and women throughout the world.
I have always been intrigued by the Declaration of Independence. Though an important document of liberty, it is a hodgepodge of political, religious, and historical theories. It invokes the laws of nature, as if nature speaks with a single moral voice, and the law of nature s silent God, rather than Christianity s God of revelation. It describes rights as unalienable and declares that all Men are created equal, and yet it presupposes the continued enslavement of men, women, and children who were certainly being denied the unalienable right to liberty endowed to them by their Creator. From these natural and God-given rights, the Declaration shifts effortlessly to social contract theory, declaring that governments derive their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed rather than from some natural or divine law. The document then moves to a series of alleged wrongs committed against the colonists by the king. Some are profound, such as rendering the military superior to the civil power and denying the benefits of a trial by jury. Some seem trivial, even whiny, such as creating new offices to harrass our People, and eat out their Substance. Yet other descriptions of wrongs are shameful in their overt racism, such as the reference to the merciless Indian Savages, whose known Rule of Warfare, is an undistinguished Destruction, of all Ages, Sexes and Conditions. Finally, it invokes the claim of necessity, then proclaims a firm Reliance on the Protection of Divine Providence and pledges the lives, fortunes, and sacred honor of the signers to the cause of independence.
In light of this oft-conflicting rhetoric, it should come as no surprise that its words have been wrenched out of context by partisan pleaders to promote parochial causes. Natural law advocates point to the Laws of Nature. Libertarians focus on the claim of unalienable rights, especially that of Liberty. Most recently those who would break down the wall of separation between church and state try to use Thomas Jefferson s own words as battering rams against the structure he himself helped to build. Despite the fact that the Declaration expressly eschewed any mention of the Bible-since some of the most influential of our founding fathers were deists who did not believe in the divine origin of the Bible-modern-day advocates cite the Declaration s invocation of Nature s God and Creator as proof that we are a Christian or a Judeo-Christian nation founded on Scripture.
In the pages to come, I will examine the various intellectual, religious, and political currents that run through this complex and often misused document of liberty and explore its appropriate place in our structure of government.
This book seeks to reclaim the Declaration for all Americans-indeed, for all people who love liberty and abhor tyranny both of the body and the mind. A review of the history, theology, and political theory underlying the Declaration of Independence will demonstrate that its purpose was not only to provide a justification for our separation from England but also to provide a foundation for a new kind of polity based on the Consent of the Governed and, as Jefferson later wrote, the unbound exercise of reason and freedom of opinion. The Declaration itself was as revolutionary as the course of conduct it sought to justify to the Opinions of Mankind. Yet we must exercise considerable caution in extrapolating the words of the past to the issues of the present. As I will try to show, the very meanings of words and concepts change markedly with the times. As Oliver Wendell Homes Jr. wisely observed, a word is not a crystal, transparent and unchanged; it is the skin of a living thought and may vary greatly in color and context according to the circu