Name_______________________________________
Date________________________________________
Period______________________________________
The Declaration of Independence Analysis
Directions: Read through the Declaration and think about the following question:
What does the Declaration actually declare? Complete the chart below based on
what you read.
Purpose of Government
Basic Human Rights
Wrongs of the King
Declaration by Colonists
Directions: Below are most of the grievances from the Declaration of Independence.
 If the grievance seems to be something that would affect only the rich and
powerful, write O (for only rich and powerful) next to that statement.
 If the grievance seems to be something that would affect all the colonists,
write A (for all the colonists) next to that statement.
 If you don’t know who would be affected, put a ? next to that statement.
1. _____ He has refused to pass, and forbidden his governors to pass, important
and necessary laws.
2. _____ He has broken up certain legislatures that opposed him, and refused to
let others be elected.
3. _____ He has refused to establish courts of justice, and has made judges
dependent on him for their jobs and salaries.
4. _____ He has sent swarms of British officers to harass our people and out our
food.
5. _____ He has kept among us, in times of peace, standing armies, without the
consent of our legislatures.
6. _____ For cutting off our trade with all parts of the world.
7. _____ For imposing taxes on us without our consent.
8. _____ For depriving us, in many cases, of the benefits of trial by jury.
9. _____ He is waging war against us; He has plundered our seas, ravaged our
coasts, burned our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
10. _____ He has started fights among us and has also forced us to live near
merciless Indian savages.
Do these grievances seem to be things that mostly upset rich people or everyone?
Do you think these complaints would give people reason to go to war and possibly
die? Why or why not?
Directions: Historians have long debated the reason the Founding Fathers wrote
the Declaration. Read what each historian has to say about the Declaration and
complete the following chart.
Historian #1: Bernard Bailyn (1967)
Claim:
The Founding Fathers wrote the
Declaration of Independence because…
Historian #2: Howard Zinn (1980)
Claim:
The Founding Fathers wrote the
Declaration of Independence because….
Evidence:
Evidence: