"Rights"



In 1864 Jules Verne introduced his view of travel to the moon in a capsule shot out of a cannon. One hundred and five years later the mission of Apollo 11 saw the first man actually step foot on the moon. From Jules Verne to Robert Goddard to John F. Kennedy, the idea and science of space travel underwent a transformation not unlike the metamorphosis the concept of “rights” has experienced over several hundred years. Studying the context of the evolution of an idea is essential in understanding the ultimate impact of that idea.[1] The idea of “rights” is at the heart of three distinct revolutionary time periods over the last four hundred years.[2] Fueled by a feudalistic society segregated into levels of status ranging from peasants and property owners to the clergy and nobility the dialogue raged to determine what rights were proper, considering all strata of the social hierarchy. The Dutch and English revolts of the 17^th century focused on the rights of religious freedom, while the American and French revolutions of the late 18^th century focused more on political freedom. The third time period included the 19^th century unifications in the United States, Japan, Germany and Italy and also represented a unique awakening in the quest for rights.[3]

Philosophers like John Locke helped to distill the essence of the dialogue by asserting the privileges endowed upon men by the “law of Nature” in the form of Life, Liberty and Property.[4] But these theories found further crystallization and true expression in the United States and French Revolutions. From the “Declaration of Independence” to the “Declaration of the Rights of Man” the period of the enlightenment seemed to shine a bright light of awareness on the source, definition and quantifying of “rights.” The French writers Diderot and d’Alembert wrote of the source of “Natural Rights,” tied them to  “Natural Law” and suggested that each individual should grant to others the same authority he takes to himself. [5] They referred to this as the “General Will” which would become the basis of the authorization of rights as ordained by the Supreme Being under the “Declaration of the Rights of Man.”[6] These thinkers of the enlightenment did not create a comprehensive list of rights but focused instead on asserting the re-enfranchisement of all men in their right to participate in the development of the  “social contract.”[7] In the Declaration of Independence Thomas Jefferson attributed the inalienable rights with which men are endowed as coming from the Creator.[8]  Whether attributed to God or Nature, the late 18^th century gave voice to a clamoring for rights that continues to this day.

To understand the evolving nature of rights in the modern era, we can look at the changing nature of “religious” rights which played a significant role in the Dutch and English revolts of the 17^th century and a less significant role in the 18^th century revolutions in the United States and France.  The Dutch and English attempts to move from Catholic to Protestant states was an expression of the right to religious tolerance and  certainly influenced many of the first settlers in America.[9]  French Enlightenment writers picked up the cause.  Voltaire championed the cause of religious toleration when he railed against the wrongful execution of Jean Calas and suggested that if a Catholic in London could find tolerance that the same should apply to a Protestant in France.[10] Though article 10 of the French Declaration of Rights would articulate the toleration Voltaire suggested, the promise it made to allow for free religious expression would be compromised in short order as the revolution turned violent in 1792.[11] Jews and Protestants experienced the spillover of the battle against Catholicism and the Religious establishment in France, demonstrating the fleeting nature of rights.[12]

Today we continue to witness an evolution of rights,  supporting the notion expressed by Marshall that the civil rights of the 18^th century became the political rights of the 19^th century and the social  rights of the 20^th and now 21^st century. The public debate in today’s political cycle is rife with the claims of war on our foundational religious freedoms. If religious rights are any indicator, the question of “rights will continue to be fluid as long as the imagination of the “enlightened human race” can find diverse minority groups not to mention spotted owls , whales and rainforests that need protecting. God has become nature and rights are sought for every kind of plant and creature possible. It would be easy to come to the conclusion that any kind of worthy endeavor including the pursuit of rights, taken to extreme, can and has become detrimental to society. Perhaps the Frenchman Malouet understood how dynamic and volatile the history of rights would be when he characterized the discussion on rights by saying it was like “transporting man to a high mountain and showing him his empire without limits, when on climbing down he must find limits at each step.”[13] We seem to be pretty creative and adept at overcoming the limits.

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[1] Anthony Grafton, The Power of Ideas, (Offord: Oxford University Press, 2011) edt. Ulinka Rublack, 363

[2]J K Wright, “Lecture 1:Political Revolutions and Rights” (Class Lecture, Arizona State University, Online, accessed March  24, 2012).

[3] Ibid

[4] John Locke, Two Treatises of Government,(Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1963), 366-367

[5] Lynn Hunt, The French Revolution and Human Rights: A Brief Documentary History,  (Bedford/St. Martins, 1996) Boston New York, 36-37

[6] Lynn Hunt,  78

[7] Lynn Hunt, 5

[8] United States Declaration of Independence (1776)

[9] JK Wright

[10] Lynn Hunt, 38-40

[11] Lynn Hunt, 79

[12] Lynn Hunt, 23

[13] Lynn Hunt, 76

Discipline and Perspective

Professor Barnes described in one of his lectures the driving force that primary sources like Vassa have in the study of history.[1] Vassa’s narrative would be considered a primary source and as such would be an important consideration for a historian. Lovejoy describes historical methodology as the “process of assessing the evidence in the context of known documentation and other source materials, never trusting any document or other piece of evidence more than it can be verified.”[2]  Lovejoy effectively provides this verification by linking Vassa’s recollection of his abduction and subsequent experience as a slave and historical evidence that would provide support to varying aspects of Vassa’s story.[3]

Caretta is clearly influenced in his assessment by his literary background when he suggests that understanding the veracity of the claims of Vassa comes down to the “means, motive and opportunity” surrounding the context of the claims.[4] Caretta persuasively argues that Vassa’s motives were strongly influenced by the need for an authentic African slave experience to support the abolitionist movement of the day, not to mention ascribing a strong financial motive to the author.[5] [6] Caretta also gives away his literary background in his assessment that the autobiography is not a trustworthy source due to the “selectivity and self-interested distortion” of the author.[7]  While Lovejoy also has concerns about the accuracy of the autobiography in general, in the case of Vassa, he traces it back to less spurious motives.[8]

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[1] Andrew Barnes, “Equiano Lecture 13”  (Class Lecture, Arizona State University, Online, accessed March 10, 2012).

[2] Paul E. Lovejoy, Autobiography and Memory: Gustavus Vassa, alias Olaudah Equiano, the African, Slavery and Abolition 27, no. 3 (2006): 331

[3] Ibid, 326-330

[4] Vincent Carretta, Response to Paul Lovejoy’s “Autobiography and Memory: Gustavus Vassa, alias Olaudah Equiano, the African”,  Slavery and Abolition 28, no. 1 (2007): 115

[5] Ibid, 116

[6] Vincent Carretta, “Olaudah Equiano or Gustavus Vassa? New Light on an Eighteenth-Century

Question of Identity.” Slavery and Abolition 20, no. 3 (1999): 96.

[7] Vincent Carretta, Response to Paul Lovejoy’s “Autobiography and Memory: Gustavus Vassa, alias Olaudah Equiano, the African”,  Slavery and Abolition 28, no. 1 (2007): 115

[8] Lovejoy, 318

Columbus the Navigator

From your text on Christopher Columbus and with additional research, discuss Columbus’ progress toward becoming a great navigator.  Include comments about how he balanced science and religion.

The mid fifteenth century saw the Ottoman Empire take Constantinople necessitating the exploration of alternative trade routes to the East. Advances in oceanic navigation and ship technology offered a way to bypass the traditional land trade routes. Portugal rose as a dominant sea power while Spain was in the final throws of driving the Moors from the Iberian Peninsula.[1]  Into this era Christopher Columbus was born in Genoa Italy. The evolution of Columbus over the last half of the fifteenth century in to a great navigator was most influenced by both his Genoese background and the years he would spend in Portugal.

Christopher Columbus grew up in Genoa a port town on the west coast of Italy.[2] His future explorations would be influenced by his exposure to the dynamic trade environment of Genoa.[3] Columbus would carry on the proud tradition of Genoese mercantilism in his future attempts to establish a western trade route and in his analysis of the potential value of commodities he encountered in the new world.[4] It was very natural for the young Christopher Columbus to find himself as an apprentice and eventually a sailor on seagoing vessels in the Mediterranean.[5] It would mark the beginning of a remarkable career at sea that would expose him to the navigational skills necessary to carry him throughout the Mediterranean[6] along the coast of northern Africa and to the far reaches of the known world.[7]  

Columbus would receive an advanced education in navigation as a result of his time in Portugal. Shipwrecked in 1476, he found himself at the heart of the most prolific seafaring culture of the time other than China.[8] Columbus benefited from the knowledge garnered by Portuguese sailors in their explorations south to Africa and west to the island of Madeira and the Azores[9] and exposed him to the newest advancements in navigation and ship technology.[10] [11]His voyage to Madeira [12] provided him with firsthand knowledge of the westward seas that aided his future westward explorations.

As important as was his development in navigational skills was his commitment to his religious beliefs and his sense of destiny. He would sign his letters as "Christ-bearer" [13] which foreshadowed his role in the Christianization of the new world. Ever the dedicated Christian, the final deal he cut with Ferdinand and Isabella intended to extract from them a commitment that the proceeds from any discoveries he would make would be used by the monarchs to finance crusaders in an effort to retake Jerusalem.[14]

[1] Kathryn Stoner, “Conquest of Spain” (Class Lecture, Arizona State University, Online, accessed March 3, 2012).

[2] Notarial Document Mentioning Christopher Columbus's Trip to Madeira to Purchase Sugar (August 25, 1479) in Christopher Columbus and the Enterprise of the Indies: A Brief History with Documents, eds. Geoffrey Symcox and Blair Sullivan, 2005, Bedford/St. Martin's, Boston.

[3] Geoffrey Symcox and Blair Sullivan, Christopher Columbus and the Enterprise of the Indies: A Brief History with Documents, 2005, Bedford/St. Martin's, Boston, 5.

[4] Symcox and Sullivan, 6

[5] Symcox and Sullivan, 5

[6] Gonzalo Fernandez de Oviedo, On Columbus's Appearance and Origins(1535-ca. 1549) in Christopher Columbus and the Enterprise of the Indies: A Brief History with Documents, eds. Geoffrey Symcox and Blair Sullivan, 2005, Bedford/St. Martin's, Boston.

[7] Christopher Columbus, Updated Letter to Fernando and Isabel (1500-1502) in Christopher Columbus and the Enterprise of the Indies: A Brief History with Documents, eds. Geoffrey Symcox and Blair Sullivan, 2005, Bedford/St. Martin's, Boston.

[8] Kathryn Stoner, “Science and Religion” (Class Lecture, Arizona State University, Online, accessed March 3, 2012).

[9] Symcox and Sullivan, 8

[10] Symcox and Sullivan, 7

[11] Kathryn Stoner, “Science and Religion” (Class Lecture, Arizona State University, Online, accessed March 3, 2012).

[12] Notarial Document Mentioning Christopher Columbus's Trip to Madeira to Purchase Sugar (August 25, 1479) in Christopher Columbus and the Enterprise of the Indies: A Brief History with Documents, eds. Geoffrey Symcox and Blair Sullivan, 2005, Bedford/St. Martin's, Boston.

[13] Christopher Columbus, Letter to Nicolo Oderigo, with "Xpo ferens" Signature (March 21, 1502) in Christopher Columbus and the Enterprise of the Indies: A Brief History with Documents, eds. Geoffrey Symcox and Blair Sullivan, 2005, Bedford/St. Martin's, Boston.

[14] Bartolome de Las Casas, On Colombus’s Appearance, Education, and Character (ca. 1527-1563) in Christopher Columbus and the Enterprise of the Indies: A Brief History with Documents, eds. Geoffrey Symcox and Blair Sullivan, 2005, Bedford/St. Martin's, Boston.

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