Similarities Between Finkelman And Thomas Jefferson

A common misconception that Thomas Jefferson brings into question is his ethical views on slavery. His statement in the Declaration of Independence, “...All men are created equal”, completely contradicts his attitude on slavery. He was an advocate for human rights, yet he himself owned slaves that he inherited and purchased. Among the numerous slaves he owned, Jefferson freed only a handful. Douglas L. Wilson and Paul Finkelman both analyze his documents and form conclusions of his views on human rights and equality. Douglas L. Wilson’s creates an ethical understanding of Jefferson’s reasoning on emancipation. He gives a multitude of cause and effect relationships on how and why he didn’t grant freedom to his slaves. Jefferson was raised with slaves, he had friends who had slaves, and also inherited slaves as well. Wilson states, “How did a man who was born into a slaveholding society,

He believes that not only his actions show his true beliefs, but also his lacking of encouragement to free these slaves. Finkelman states, “Because he was the author of the Declaration of Independence and a leader of the American Enlightenment, the test of Jefferson's position on slavery is not whether he was better than the worst of his generation...whether he was able to transcend his economic interests and his sectional background to implement the ideals he articulated. Jefferson fails the test”. Finkelman insinuates the idea of Jefferson being a weak willed person, letting society morphe his own values into acceptable viewpoints in the eighteenth century. The interpretation of these events lead to the conclusions of Jefferson being hypocritical, and incompetent. The ethical standard Thomas Jefferson should be evaluated on is morality. Whether or not he owned slaves, he did nothing to remedy the horrid slavery conditions or speak up on their behalf, he made himself a