Lesson 9: What Purposes of Government Are in the Declaration of Independence?

Terms

Declaration of Independence (1776)  The Declaration is a docu- ment written mainly by Thomas Jefferson. It was approved by Congress. It explains why the thirteen British colonies in America wanted to be free from the control of the British government. It also contains some of the most important ideas about our government. For example, it says that a main purpose of our government is to protect our rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It also says that all the power of government comes from the people. If the people do not like how their government works, they can change it and try to make a better one. This means that people working in government are the servants of the people. They are not the masters of the people.

liberty  The words liberty and freedom mean the same thing. Freedom can mean your ability to choose to do or not do something without being limited by another person, group, or government.

purposes of government  The purposes of government are the things government is responsible for doing. Purposes of our government can be found in the Declaration of Independence. They can also be found in the Preamble to the Constitution. For example, the Declaration says that a main purpose of government is to make your rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness safe. The Preamble says your government is supposed to provide for the general welfare. That means it is supposed to do things that help all the people, not just a few it favors.

pursuit of happiness  The right to do the best you can to lead a life that makes you happy and feel good about yourself. However, you must do this in a way that respects the same right for everyone else.

right to liberty  The right to be free. Some examples of liberties are the rights to believe what you wish, to read what you want, to speak freely, to have whatever friends you would like to have, and to travel wherever you want to go.

right to life  The right to live without fear of being injured or killed by others.