Based on the information from the documents, it is evident that Thomas Jefferson did not always live up to his ideals and beliefs. To begin with, he believed that all people were equal and should be granted the same fundamental rights (Tourkochoriti 223). To support his opinion, Jefferson promoted education for all citizens and aimed to provide talented children from low-income households with free opportunities to attend school (Document 3). However, Jefferson’s actions and words demonstrate that he was racist and discriminative towards black people. For instance, in his letter to Edward Coles, he wrote that combining people of different colors would be a disgrace (Document 2). Besides, Jefferson owned about eighty slaves that worked on his plantation and worked hard to meet his whole family’s needs. This fact shows that despite his belief in equality and human rights, he treated black people as property. It is known that he only freed seven slaves, which conflicts with his focus on ensuring equal human rights (Document 4). Another ideal of Jefferson was limited government as the proper form of ruling the country. In this regard, he lived up to this standard by supporting free trade, shrinking the government and costs, as well as decreasing its social functions’ costs (Document 7). At the same time, Jefferson used excessive power as he purchased Louisiana (Document 6). Such an action was beyond the president’s authority, which means that Jefferson did not uphold his beliefs. He believed in the ultimate power of the Constitution but did not follow this principle in the case of Louisiana. To conclude, Jefferson’s actions were not always consistent with his ideals and beliefs, indicating that he was controversial.
Work Cited
Tourkochoriti, Ioanna. Freedom of Expression: The Revolutionary Roots of American and French Legal Thought. Cambridge University Press, 2021.