Name ______Date:______Period:______
Analysis of The Declaration of Independence
The Preamble
1. According to the preamble who is the primary audience for this document?
2. Why would they have chosen this audience instead of specifically focusing on England? How does this demonstrate the ethos for this document?
The Declaration of People’s Natural Rights and Relationship to Government
3. In paragraph two, Jefferson discusses “unalienable rights” (272). What does he mean by this statement? List the three rights he calls unalienable.
4. According to the writer, when would it be right to overthrow a government?
5. When does Jefferson say it is NOT right to change a government?
6. Think about the ending of this section: “The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having, in direct object, the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these states. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world” (272). Complete the chart below. Explain how this quote appeals to the logic. Explain how this quote appeals to the emotions.
Logical Appeal (Logos) / Emotional Appeal (Pathos)The Long List of Complaints against King George III, the British King
7. The writers of the Declaration list NUMEROUS complaints that they have against England. Paraphrase at least THREE of their complaints in your own words.
8. “A prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a tyrant is unfit to be the ruler of a free people” (276). Jefferson uses the repetition of the words tyrant and tyranny several times. Define tyrant. Why do you believe Jefferson choose this loaded word? How does it evoke pathos of his audience and King George?
9. Look at the third to the last paragraph, lines 125-130. What two persuasive techniques are prevalent in this paragraph? Explain how this paragraph embodies those techniques.
10. “We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity which denounces our separation; and hold them, as well as we hold the rest of mankind, enemies in war, in peace friends” (276). Who is the “them” Jefferson references? How does this statement further help establish the ethos of the signers of this document?
A conclusion that formally states America’s independence from Great Britain
11. Summarize lines 138-150. Be sure to include who the colonists believe would be supporting them in their quest for independence.
12. “And, for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor” (276).Complete the chart below. Explain how this quote appeals to the logic. Explain how this quote appeals to the emotions.
Logical Appeal (Logos) / Emotional Appeal (Pathos)Connect back to the time period
13. Explain how this document represents the ideas of Rationalism.