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【正文】 tinguished leaders of the American Revolution—Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Paine—were powerfully influenced by English and French Enlightenment thought. Jefferson and Franklin both spent time in France and brought home with them Locke’s theories concerning natural rights. In January of 1776, an Englishman named Thomas Paine published a small book called Common Sense, which soon became a bestseller. The book stated that America must be free to make its own way. It was the efforts of those forerunners of the Enlightenment in America that made Americans believed that America should be a free and independent nation. On April 19, 1775, the first shot was fired when 700 British soldiers went to capture a colonial arms depot in a small town of Concord near Boston. Thus the American War of Independence began. Declaration of IndependenceOne year after the proclamation of war, on July 2, 1776, the united colonies finally resolved that they were, and of right ought to be free and independent states. Thomas Jefferson, because of his skill with pen, won the job to draft a declaration of independence. On July 4, 1776, The Declaration of Independence passed through the Congress. It showed England and other countries that Americans were determined to bee a free nation. It solemnly declared: We hold these truths to be selfevident, that all men are created equal。(討論稿) The Enlightenment and Its Heritage to American Culture↘(times new Roman 三號)Introduction↘(times new Roman 小三號)In the long history of human civilization, it is really a miracle that America, a fairly young nation, has evolved from a colony of Britain to a superpower today in merely more than two hundred years. Large quantities of immigrants are drawn to America every year in hope of realizing their “American dream”, among the essence of which are the familiar values such as liberty, democracy and justice, etc... Meanwhile, the spirit of American culture spread all over the world are exerting great influence on the established culture and customs of other nations, which is well justified by the term “Americanization”. To understand why American culture has bee so influential in the current times, it is important to go back in time to explore its roots. The Enlightenment in the 18th century with its flourishing natural science and brilliant new ideas about human rights may shed some light on the question. ↘(times new Roman 小四 號)1 The Age of Reason↘(times new Roman 小三號)1．1Political and Economic Background↘(times new Roman 四號)Although the intellectual movement called “The Enlightenment” is usually associated with the 18th century, its source in fact can be traced much further. Europe of the 17th century was dominated by dogma and fanaticism. Working hand in hand, both church and state repressed any voices against clericalism or feudal privilege. Slavery was widely practiced, especially in the colonial plantations of the western hemisphere, and its cruelties were frequently defended by leading religious figures. The despotism of monarchs exercising great powers than any medieval king was supported by the doctrine of the “divine right of kings,” and scripture quoted to show that revolution was detested by God. As witchhunts prevailed in society and organizations trying to challenge the twin authorities of church and state were banned, the conflict between rulers and people sharpened. Religious oppression being the mainstream, trade and merce still gained development. With the wealth brought back from Asia and the Americas, a new class of merchants gradually rose into prominence in the 18th century, as were later called the bourgeois class. Great fortunes were made in every town and the wave of prosperity brought a greater degree of selfconfidence to them. They became increasingly powerful in politics as well as in economy. These merchants had their own ideas about the life they desired and the world in which they wanted to live. They believed that their earnings were the fruits of their own hard work, unlike the inherited wealth of the aristocracy. They were also aware that the aristocracy living on their paid taxes while contributing nothing of value to
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