Source: Virginia Declaration of Rights, June 1776
"That all men are by nature equally free and independent and have certain inherent rights, of which, when they enter into a state of society, they cannot, by any compact, deprive or divest their posterity; namely, the enjoyment of life and liberty, with the means of acquiring and possessing property, and pursuing and obtaining happiness and safety."
The ideas expressed in this excerpt most directly reflect which of the following Enlightenment concepts?
- AThe radical restructuring of the social hierarchy to eliminate the aristocracy
- BThe immediate abolition of chattel slavery to establish racial equality
- The belief in natural rights to life, liberty, and propertyCevap
- DThe consolidation of state-controlled mercantilist trade policies
Cevap
The belief in natural rights to life, liberty, and property
The excerpt from the Virginia Declaration of Rights emphasizes that all individuals possess inherent rights to life, liberty, and property (framed here as acquiring and possessing property). This directly reflects the Enlightenment concept of natural rights, most famously articulated by John Locke, which argued that these rights are fundamental and cannot be surrendered to a government.
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Anahtar Kavram
The influence of Enlightenment ideas of natural rights on revolutionary documents.