America s Move Toward Independence - 1776 Words

When one considers the part Enlightenment ideas played in America’s move toward independence, it is firstly mandatory to address two key concepts; what we mean by the term enlightenment and what these ideas mean in relation to American Independence. Broadly speaking, the Enlightenment is commonly perceived to be a philosophical movement of the 18th Century that introduced new ways of thinking and encouraged a broader understanding of the world. However, the enlightenment realistically isn t this simple; it wasn’t a process, nor was it simplistic and universal. It was a series of movements in public life, religion, politics and science that occurred at the hands of the minority of innovative thinkers. Roy Porter perhaps best encapsulates†¦show more content†¦Studying American history allows a unique insight into a â€Å"New World† that transitioned from being a colony under the control of European powers from as early as the 10th Century, to an independen t country testing the political guidelines that had created it. Politics, arguably, is where one can see the ideas of Enlightenment play its most definitive role; definitive because of its authority and legacy within America for years to come. In the lead up to the American War of Independence, it became clear that there was increasing discontent with England and the control it had exercised. However, I remain keen not to overstate the discontent; not all people that had settled in America and the colonialised areas wanted independence, just as not every individual in Europe from the 18th Century sought to be an enlightened being. Willi Paul Adams best surmises stating, ‘popular sovereignty, liberty, equality and property did not only function as unifying calls to action. They also divided Americans into more or less radical†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ The radicalization in politics is a feature that undoubtedly can be traced to the Enlightenment philosophers. The Declaration of Independen ce presented by the 13 colonies that wished to break away from England and written