What is the Enlightenment? Describe the chief features and leading ideas of the Enlightenment and how they related to one another. Answer question in a paragraph with five or six sentences.

Jefferson's idea of "unalienable rights" in the Declaration of Independence is similar to the idea of natural rights, which comes from Locke. According to Locke, people are born with certain inherent rights that the government cannot remove. Jefferson writes in the Declaration that "all men are created equal." This idea is derived in part from Locke's idea of the "tabula rasa," which means that all people are born without prior knowledge and are therefore equal in status.

The idea that the government owes its existence to the consent of the governed and that once the government goes against this so-called social contract, it should be overthrown, comes from Locke and Rousseau. According to their philosophy, people give up some of their rights to the government for protection and security, but the government must still protect individuals' natural rights. Another Enlightenment idea in the Declaration is that people have the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness . These...

(The entire section contains 3 answers and 627 words.)

Explanation:

possession of power

exercising of power

class and power