Study On Jefferson's Liberty Thoughts

Thomas Jefferson was a famous statesman and thinker in American history. He was an important representative figure of American liberalism. The Declaration of Independence, drawn by Jefferson, is a brilliant document in the history of liberalism .From following three perspectives: individual, state and society, I try to discuss Jefferson's liberty thoughts, which mainly involve natural rights and separation of powers. He developed John locke's natural rights, considering "seeking happiness" as one of important natural rights. Taking Montesquieu's political thoughts as a base, Jefferson brought forward his own ideals. Jefferson focused mainly on separation of powers instead of checks and balance of powers. Jefferson symbolized his liberty thoughts for its republicanism , which makes it difficult to recognize Jefferson's role in the history of British liberalism tradition. Furthermore, it makes Jefferson incline to the French liberalism tradition.All in all, Jefferson's liberty thoughts resulted from both the British liberty theories and the French liberty theories.