"In this edited conversation, Isaacson '74, a journalist and author of best-selling biographies of Benjamin Franklin (2003) and Steve Jobs (2011), digs into the story behind the drafting of the sentence, explains why he believes it is so foundational, and argues that a re-examination of the ideas could remind our riven nation of the common values to which we aspire."
"I think it's a sentence that gives the mission statement for what our country can be. We're about to enter our 250th birthday, and we're so polarized that we're not in the mood for a birthday party. And I think it's important for people to focus on what's the mission of our country, what common values do we share, and maybe that'll lower some of the temperature at least for a year, so that we can have a 250th celebration."
"I also think there's a philosophical depth and beauty to the "We hold these truths to be self-evident" sentence - every word of it. I go back to my Harvard days when political philosophers John Rawls and Robert Nozick taught John Locke and Thomas Hobbes and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and what do we mean by "we"? What is a social contract? What is common ground,"
The Declaration's second line proclaims that 'all men are created equal' and enumerates unalienable rights — life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness — framing a national mission. That sentence functions as an aspirational mission statement intended to define common values and civic purpose. Re-examining its philosophical depth can prompt reflection about social contract, membership, and shared obligations amid contemporary polarization. Approaching the nation's 250th anniversary, revisiting these principles could lower tension by refocusing public attention on equality, rights, and collective aims, offering a basis for unity and renewed civic commitment.
Read at Harvard Gazette
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]