Man [is] a rational animal, endowed by nature with rights and with an innate sense of justice.
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes the inherent nature of humans as rational beings who possess rights and a sense of justice.
Thomas Jefferson's quote reflects the Enlightenment belief in human nature's rationality and the intrinsic rights that every individual possesses. He argues that these rights are innate and foundational, suggesting that justice is not merely a societal construct but a natural law inherent in every person, linking morality with the essence of humanity.
In practice
In a speech advocating for human rights, one could quote Jefferson to highlight the inherent rights of all individuals.
The firmness with which the (American) people have withstood the... abuses of the press, the discernment they have manifested between truth and falsehood, show that they may safely be trusted to hear everything true and false and to form a correct judgment between them.
I, place economy among the first & most important republican virtues, & public debt as the greatest of the dangers to be feared
βWe must make our choice between economy and liberty or confusion and servitude...If we run into such debts, we must be taxed in our meat and drink, in our necessities and comforts, in our labor and in our amusements...if we can prevent the government from wasting the labor of the people, under the pretense of caring for them, they will be happy.
Very many and very meritorious were the worthy patriots who assisted in bringing back our government to its republican tack. To preserve it in that, will require unremitting vigilance.
A nation, as a society, forms a moral person, and every member of it is personally responsible for his society.
Timid men prefer the calm of despotism to the tempestuous sea of liberty.
The desire to rule is the mother of heresies.
The instant formal government is abolished, society begins to act. A general association takes place, and common interest produces common security.
Great men are seldom over-scrupulous in the arrangement of their attire.
Our problem is within ourselves. We have found the means to blow the world physically apart. Spiritually, we have yet to find the means to put together the world's broken pieces.
You don't need organized religion to connect with the universe. Often a church is the only place you can go to find peace and quiet... But it shouldn't be confused with connecting with one's spirit.
And I can imagine Farmer saying he doesn't care if no one else is willing to follow their example. He's still going to make these hikes, he'd insist, because if you say that seven hours is too long to walk for two families of patients, you're saying that their lives matter less than some others', and the idea that some lives matter less is the root of all that's wrong with the world.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.