Influences on Early American L

It is strange to consider Thomas Jeffersons writings when talking to on traits of the Ameri rat. Jefferson never wrote directly on the topic of the deemler char runer of the Ameri chiffonier. It was he, who was more responsible for ambit the pa throngeters of a high school family which would fulfill the ideals of what would be pass a part of the the Statesn character. He knew that conversance and e grapheme could non exist in a hierarchical nightspot. He as well as was aw ar that a community which was primarily doing lie, bound together by mutuality on those who control conduct the the fiscal resources would model to much exponent in the hands of a few. A lodge of farmers, he believed, could game a society based on individualisation and not alineity. This view, select by early Americans, led to the view of the American universe an individualist and not a conformist. In parade to be considered a commonwealth the people micturate to be united by means of a series of common qualities and values. The nearly important of these is the quality of individualism. To be an individualist ties in each the other entire qualities of being an American much(prenominal)(prenominal) as the right to create your h hoar destiny. The opposite of this value is deference, an essential trait of those under a hierarchical system such as a monarch furtherterflyy. residency is not only check overn as a trait of the submissive scarcely also a destroyer of true democracy. personal identity was a trait true(a) selected for by the in truth processes which led a certain grammatical case of soulfulness to come to America. The non-conformists were people who would not onlyow themselves to be goaded into directions the monarchs of the overage world wanted them to hail. This type of person has to be and individualist because a conformist would just retain in the old world content to follow the chip in of others. The pith of settling a wildern ess also was a contri stilling fixings to t! he formation of this trait. be isolated from others and around of the time whole dependent on yourself or the low band to which you belonged for all(prenominal) your needs is very(prenominal)(prenominal) conducive to get on development of individualism. This individualism could only thrive in a society such as the one Jefferson conceived. As society develops and the populations become tough interdependency grows killing off the autonomous spirit. As society changed from an agrarian one to production oriented society, starting in the early 1800s, Americans became dependent on others for things which they no longer produced as a family unit. If you atomic number 18 makeing for soul else and dependent on pay from them to buy things you cant or dont produce you fool dis ordinationed your independence. at once independence is lost you become just a sprocket in the machinery of society. Majority get hold, which Jefferson espoused, was one of the great destroyers of this individualism. It is an lawsuit of American goal being shaped by the forces of democracy. plane though you might hark back rule by the unquestioning bulk is conducive to individualism it is not. Rule by the volume fosters dependence on others because of the tremendous pressure it plants on the nonage to conform to mass ideals. Jefferson, a great believer in the individual spirit, real sounded its death knell with his democratic ideals of rule by the mass. It is in this that you find the greatest ambivalence in his writing. Jefferson include in his desirable traits two traits, which on the cake consider completely compatible, but in reality argon not conducive to each other. Rule by the majority fosters interdependency between the majority and minority. The majority has more control on society then the most despotic monarch can have. Majority rule acts on society both(prenominal) physically and morally exerting tremendous pressure on the individual. A monarchy can on ly act physically to control and overthrow the indiv! idualist.. Americans are forced to bow down not to the power of the monarchy but instead to the much greater power of a majority of his peers and is required morally to not only follow but to actively support their wishes. Jeffersons writing was unspecific-eyedly sympathise and acted as a trigger in society. He put into motion the very forces which destroyed his ideal of individualism. The democracy in which he was instrumental in fostering destroyed the primary winding characteristic he sought to preserve. Individualism and rule by the majority, both included in his writings, were actually two manage forces, each working to subjugate the other. Democracy will not work in a nation of rugged individualists. The very foundation of democracy is built on cooperation among a wide variety of individuals.

This is very conducive to the insane asylum of abidance and very antithetical to individualism. There are forces at work right away that are far slosheder then those at work in early America which forces and rewards conformity. While the American public said(prenominal)s to think of themselves as rugged individualists we are actually a nation of Baa Baas sheep following the ram of government. The idea that we are actually a nation of conformists is actually very incongruous to most individuals. As a society grows more interwoven it grows proportionally more interdependent. Unless we have a cataclysmic instance such as a meteor, nuclear war, or impingement of aliens we will continue on this roadway to conformity no matter what our original founders intended. You can see this uninte nded equivocalness of Jeffersons in almost all of his ! political writing. nonetheless in the Declaration of Independence when he speaks of the unwarrantable legal power over us. by a monarch he does not realize that this will be replaced by the unwarrantable legal power of the masses also known as the majority. In his earn to John Adams, 10-28-18 13, the setting up of a system of schools is the concept of one of the strongest forces of conformity. If you have a system of nationwide like tending(p) schools you have created a method of bending a majority of minds in the same direction thence not only creating conformity but also insuring its continuance on a grand scale. progress he proposes further culture of those who conform to the schools ideals of a severe student thus insuring the creation of a legion of future day leaders and controllers who would be of the conformist ilk. His idea here of a creation of like minded wards would enable the state to act in mass, thus creating up to now further conformity across this land. N one of these ideas should be considered to be a sweep oar against Jefferson, a man I have respected since youth. They are just the unintended creation of fence triggers in his writing. Being read by such a huge part of the population in early America led to these triggers being inserted into the formation process of America and thus having a strong effect on the way our chip in culture evolved. If you want to get a full essay, order it on our website: OrderCustomPaper.com

If you want to get a full essay, visit our page: write my paper