Jonah Patel
The pursuit of happiness is a well-known phrase from the United States Declaration of Independence, drafted by Thomas Jefferson. It is one of the three unalienable rights mentioned in the Declaration, along with life and liberty, that all humans are entitled to by their Creator, and which governments are created to protect. While the phrase is not legally binding, it has been widely referenced and considered part of the foundation of ethics or natural law. The phrase has also been written into various state and national constitutions, including those of Virginia, Massachusetts, Wisconsin, and Vermont, and has been cited in landmark Supreme Court decisions on marriage.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| The pursuit of happiness | The right to seek and obtain happiness and safety |
| The right to freedom of marriage | |
| The right to freedom from restraint | |
| The right to engage in contracts | |
| The right to hold an occupation | |
| The right to learn and gain knowledge | |
| The right to raise children | |
| The right to demonstrate faith and participate in religion | |
| The right to acquire and possess property |
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What You'll Learn
The pursuit of happiness and its legal protection
The phrase "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" is a well-known phrase from the United States Declaration of Independence. The Declaration recognises these as unalienable rights, which have been endowed by the Creator and which governments are created to protect. However, the Declaration is not legally binding, and the phrase "pursuit of happiness" is notably absent from the US Constitution, the highest law of the land.
Despite this omission, the pursuit of happiness has played an important role in American legal history and is increasingly significant internationally. Protections for the pursuit of happiness have been written into various state and national constitutions, and it has been cited in landmark Supreme Court decisions on marriage.
The concept of the pursuit of happiness has evolved over time. In the Bible, the prophet Isaiah describes a vision of a world where people turn in their weapons to make farm equipment, which can be interpreted as a form of thick happiness, benefiting both humanity and the world. In the 18th century, philosophers such as John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz associated natural rights with happiness. Locke, for example, argued that political society existed to protect "property," which he defined as a person's "life, liberty, and estate." In contrast, others like Jean-Jacques Burlamaqui described the pursuit of "true and solid happiness" as a noble endeavour.
The phrase "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" was included in the Virginia Declaration of Rights, adopted by the Virginia Convention of Delegates less than a month before the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts and Wisconsin also included similar language in their state constitutions. These protections remain in place today.
In interpreting the Fourteenth Amendment's due process clause, Justice McReynolds found that it protects not only freedom from restraint but also freedoms related to contracts, occupation, knowledge, marriage, and religion. These freedoms collectively contribute to the orderly pursuit of happiness. This interpretation has been central to landmark decisions on the constitutionality of marriage, including Loving v. Virginia, which struck down a Virginia statute prohibiting interracial marriages, and Obergefell v. Hodges, which found bans on same-sex marriage unconstitutional.
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The pursuit of happiness in the Declaration of Independence
The phrase "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" is a well-known phrase from the United States Declaration of Independence. The phrase gives three examples of the unalienable rights which the Declaration says have been given to all humans by their Creator, and which governments are created to protect. The Declaration of Independence was drafted by Thomas Jefferson and later edited by the Committee of Five, which consisted of Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert Livingston.
The phrase "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" is not legally binding, but it has been widely referenced and seen as an inspiration for the basis of government. The phrase has also been written into various state and national constitutions and has been cited in some of the United States' Supreme Court's landmark decisions on marriage.
The inclusion of "the pursuit of happiness" in the Declaration of Independence is often attributed to John Locke's philosophical doctrine. Locke argued in "Two Treatises of Government" that political society existed for the sake of protecting "property", which he defined as a person's "life, liberty, and estate". However, some scholars disagree with this attribution, instead attributing the phrase to Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Historian Jack Rakove also posits Jean-Jacques Burlamaqui as a possible source of inspiration for Jefferson's phrase.
The phrase "the pursuit of happiness" has been interpreted in various ways. Some delegates at state constitutional conventions considered the broad language of "the pursuit of happiness" to cover other rights, and thus, they did not need to include more specific rights. In the present day, Brent Strawn, a professor at Emory University, notes that the contemporary understanding of "the pursuit of happiness" is a "thinner, less meaningful shadow" of what the authors of the Declaration of Independence intended. Strawn suggests that the American Dream, often associated with the pursuit of money, may not be a sufficient definition of true happiness. Arthur Schlesinger, in an essay published in 1964, also points out that at the time of the Declaration's composition, "the pursuit of happiness" did not mean merely chasing or seeking happiness, but rather practicing and experiencing it.
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The pursuit of happiness in state constitutions
The phrase "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" is a well-known line from the United States Declaration of Independence, drafted by Thomas Jefferson and edited by the Committee of Five, which consisted of Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert Livingston. The phrase gives three examples of the unalienable rights which the Declaration says have been given to all humans by their Creator, and which governments are created to protect.
While the Declaration of Independence recognises these rights, the phrase "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" is notably absent from the US Constitution, which only explicitly mentions life and liberty. However, the pursuit of happiness has been written into various state constitutions and has been cited in some of the US Supreme Court's landmark decisions on marriage.
The Virginia Declaration of Rights, adopted by the Virginia Convention of Delegates in 1776, included a guarantee of the inherent right to "the enjoyment of life and liberty... and pursuing and obtaining happiness and safety". The Commonwealth of Massachusetts followed suit, including the term happiness in its own state constitution eight times, protecting the unalienable rights of the people in "seeking and obtaining their happiness and safety". Wisconsin's constitution, adopted in 1848, also assured the inherent rights of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" for its people. These three states are the only states to explicitly recognise the right to the pursuit of happiness, although similar language appears in the constitutions of many other states.
The right to the pursuit of happiness has been central to several landmark decisions of the US Supreme Court, including Loving v. Virginia, which found a prohibition on interracial marriages in Virginia to be unconstitutional, and Obergefell v. Hodges, which found bans on same-sex marriages to be unconstitutional.
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The pursuit of happiness in marriage
The "pursuit of happiness" is a well-known phrase from the United States Declaration of Independence, drafted by Thomas Jefferson. The phrase gives three examples of the unalienable rights which the Declaration says have been given to all humans by their Creator, and which governments are created to protect. These rights are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
While the Declaration of Independence recognizes these rights, the US Constitution does not explicitly mention happiness. However, the Fourteenth Amendment's due process clause has been interpreted to protect freedom of marriage as "essential to the orderly pursuit of happiness by free men." This interpretation has been cited in landmark Supreme Court decisions on marriage, including Loving v. Virginia, which struck down a Virginia statute prohibiting interracial marriages, and Obergefell v. Hodges, which found bans on same-sex marriage unconstitutional.
The concept of the pursuit of happiness has been influential in American legal history and has been written into various state constitutions. For example, the Virginia Declaration of Rights, adopted less than a month before the signing of the Declaration of Independence, included a guarantee of the inherent right to "the enjoyment of life and liberty... and pursuing and obtaining happiness and safety." Similar language appears in the constitutions of other states, such as Massachusetts, Wisconsin, and Vermont.
In the context of marriage, the pursuit of happiness can be understood as the right to seek and experience happiness within the marital relationship. This may include the freedom to marry the person of one's choice, regardless of race or gender, as well as the freedom to pursue shared goals, interests, and experiences that bring happiness to the couple. It is worth noting that the understanding of "pursuit of happiness" has evolved over time, and today it may be associated with the American Dream and material success, which may not align with the original intention of the phrase.
In conclusion, while the phrase "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" is not explicitly mentioned in the US Constitution, it has been central to legal decisions on marriage and has influenced state constitutions. In the context of marriage, the pursuit of happiness can be understood as the right to seek and experience happiness with one's spouse, free from unreasonable restrictions imposed by the state.
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The pursuit of happiness in the Bible
The phrase "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" is a well-known phrase from the United States Declaration of Independence. The phrase gives three examples of the unalienable rights that the Declaration says have been given to all humans by their Creator, and which governments are created to protect. However, the phrase "the pursuit of happiness" is not explicitly mentioned in the US Constitution.
The pursuit of happiness is also referenced in the Bible, where it is often associated with following God's word and commandments. For instance, in the book of Proverbs, it is stated that "happy is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding". Similarly, in the book of Psalms, it is written that "happy is he whose hope is in the Lord his God".
The Bible also uses the word "makarios" (translated as "blessed"), which can also be accurately translated as "happy". For example, the Beatitudes in Matthew 5:3-10 could be read as "Happy are...". Thus, the Bible provides a path for pursuing happiness through seeking God and following His commandments.
It is important to note that pursuing happiness does not mean pursuing one's desires at the expense of others or at odds with God's way. Instead, it is about finding contentment, fulfillment, and joy in following God's instructions and trusting in His control over one's life.
The founding fathers of the United States may have been influenced by these biblical principles when drafting the Declaration of Independence, recognizing the pursuit of happiness as a core tenet of humanity and a fundamental right.
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Frequently asked questions
No, the pursuit of happiness is not mentioned in the US Constitution. However, it is mentioned in the Declaration of Independence, which is not legally binding.
The phrase "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" was written by Thomas Jefferson, the primary author of the Declaration of Independence. The phrase is believed to have been influenced by the works of philosophers such as John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, and Jean-Jacques Burlamaqui.
The interpretation of the phrase has evolved over time. Initially, it was understood as practicing and experiencing happiness, rather than just seeking it. The phrase has been used in landmark Supreme Court decisions on marriage, and it has been cited in state constitutions to protect various rights, including the right to earn a living and to defend private property.
