Jefferson's Declaration of Independence: Origins, Philosophy, and Theology

By Allen Jayne

Book Overview

Allen Jayne analyzes the ideology of the Declaration of Independence -- and its implications -- by going back to the sources of Jefferson's ideas: Bolingbroke, Kames, Reid, and Locke. He concludes that the Declaration must be read as an attack on two claims of absolute authority: that of government over its subjects and of religion over the minds of men. Today's world is more secular than Jefferson's, and the importance of philosophical theology in eighteenth-century critical thought must be recognized in order to understand fully and completely the Declaration's implications. Jayne addresses this need by putting religion back into the discussion.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0813190037
• ISBN13: 9780813190037
• Release Date: November 2000
• Publisher: University Press of Kentucky
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 0.92 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 9.0"
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher