KEY TERMS Key Terms and People to Know for the Regents Exam
Thomas Paine’s Common Sense
Thomas Paine wrote Common Sense to convince Americans who had been undecided to support independence from Great Britain.
Declaration of Independence
Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration to state the reasons for separating from Great Britain, to highlight the importance of “natural rights” and the “consent of the governed,” and to claim that people had the right to overthrow unjust governments.
John Locke / Enlightenment
Thomas Jefferson was influenced by John Locke’s social contract theory and Enlightenment ideas that claimed that the power to govern belongs to the people.