The Historian

Thomas Jefferson and historical self-construction: the earth belongs to the living?

The Historian | January 1, 1999 | Copyright

"The earth belongs in usufruct to the living," Thomas Jefferson wrote to James Madison on 6 September 1789. It was a "self-evident" principle "that the dead have neither powers nor rights over it." Since "by the law of nature, one generation is to another as one independent nation is to another," parents have no moral authority to impose decisions upon children who had no part in making them. The same rule, he contended, should apply to governments. After studying mortality tables and calculating that each generation comprised a majority of the electorate for fewer than two…

Related newspaper, magazine, and trade journal articles from HighBeam Research

(Including press releases, facts, information, and biographies)

Thomas Jefferson and historical self-construction: the earth belongs to the...
Magazine article from: The Historian ...The earth belongs in usufruct to the living," Thomas Jefferson wrote to...It was a "self-evident...upon it, belongs to its present...1789. The earth belonged to the living; yet to...importance of historical memory...

For more facts and information, see all results

Find more facts and information related to the article Thomas Jefferson and historical ...