american scripture making the declaration of independence

Urbana/Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 2008. “The Declaration of Independence in World Context.” America on the World Stage: A Global Approach to U.S. New York: Workman Publishing, 2003, 137–138.Īrmitage, David. “Letter to Elizabeth Cady Stanton.” Why Freedom Matters: The Spirit of the Declaration of Independence in Prose, Poetry, and Song - from 1776 to the Present. “Courtroom Speech on Women’s Right to Vote.” Why Freedom Matters: The Spirit of the Declaration of Independence in Prose, Poetry, and Song - from 1776 to the Present. East Lansing, MI: Michigan State University Press, 2007.Īnthony, Susan B. Significant Moments in American Public Discourse. A Rhetorical History of the United States. Rhetoric, Religion, and the Roots of Identity in British Colonial America. Cambridge, MA/London, England: Harvard University Press, 2000.Īndrews, James R., ed. 〈〉.Īmsterdam, Anthony G., and Jerome Bruner. “Intertextuality.” The Literary Encyclopedia. Lanham/ New York/Oxford: Taylor Trade Publishing, 2003.Īllen, Graham. America’s Founding Fathers: Their Uncommon Wisdom and Wit. The document is on public display in the National Archives in Washington, D.C.Īdler, Bill, ed. Little wonder, then, that it stands as a cornerstone of Americans’ sense of their own uniqueness” (Armitage 18). The ‘self-evident truths’ it proclaimed to ‘life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness’ have guaranteed it a sacrosanct place as ‘American scripture,’ a testament to the special qualities of a chosen people. As David Armitage comments, this document proclaims the Americans’ uniqueness in that it is, indeed, a national kind of gospel: “No document is as familiar to students or so deeply entwined with what it means to be an American. Constitution and the Bill of Rights, represents one of the “founding documents” of the United States of America, often labeled as the Americans’ “charters of freedom” ( cf. The American Declaration of Independence, which holds this promise, together with the U.S. It started way back in 1776, and God grant that America will be true to her dream” (King 41). in a sermon delivered in 1965, still hoping and pleading for this American Dream to come true for “all men”: “We have a great dream. “Never before in the history of the world has a sociopolitical document expressed in such profound, eloquent, and unequivocal language the dignity and the worth of human personality,” remarked Martin Luther King, Jr.

They manifest a confession, a promise, a guideline, a dream. However, these lines are more than just memorable. The American citizen is as familiar with these lines as he/she may be with a prayer, a song, or a favorite aphorism.

American scripture making the declaration of independence