On what basis should the new be erected? Great Britain
had its _Magna Carta_ and its Bill of Rights; America had its
Declaration of Independence. France was now given a "Declaration of the
Rights of Man and of the Citizen." This document, which reflected the
spirit of Rousseau's philosophy and incorporated some of the British
and American provisions, became the platform of the French Revolution
and tremendously influenced political thought in the nineteenth and
twentieth centuries. A few of its most striking sentences are as
follows: "Men are born and remain free and equal in rights." The rights
of man are "liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression."
"Law is the expression of the general will. Every citizen has a right
to participate personally, or through his representative, in its
formation. It must be the same for all." "No person shall be accused,
arrested, or imprisoned except in the cases and according to the forms
prescribed by law." Religious toleration, freedom of speech, and
liberty of the press are affirmed.
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