Essay On Life Liberty And The Pursuit Of Happiness

America. Created in a time of need, America began, to the European eyes, a new and dangerous place. The New World was indeed perilous to the numerous colonists who settled there, but it offered great potential for success. At the beginning, the majority of the settlers perished in the unfamiliar landscape filled with unfamiliar threats. For several settlers, the risks would eventually pay off. As their survival became less uncertain, the American colonies lived fairly autonomous lives. Many British settlers sought the New World as a land of freedom, where they could govern themselves instead of suffer under the religion of the King. This autonomy disappeared after the war between France and Britain, known in America as the French and Indian War. The costs of war drove Britain into debt, and it began to take notice of its colonies as a source for potential income. They began to tax the colonists, but would not grant them any official representation. The tyranny led to a formal Declaration of Independence issued by the colonies, and a war to formally defend this claimed independence broke out.

The creation of the American nation was not lightly made. It was not a rallying cry …show more content…
America protects our freedoms and rights to “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” (Jefferson). The pursuit of happiness is an odd right, when considered. It may be interpreted as the right to live wherever and however we think we can best profit. If we can benefit and flourish, we make new ventures. If we cannot, we can retreat back into the current society, which may support us. In a way, the whims of society are just as unknown as the whims of nature. It could be that social frontiers now exist where frontiers of settlement do not. Society is always in turmoil, caught in a battle of old against new. This conflict manifests in modern politics as “conservatives” against “liberals”, but the conflict goes back to the beginning of the