--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We have forgotten what Thomas Jefferson…" description: "\"“We have forgotten what Thomas Jefferson told us in 1776: that we are endowed by the Creator \"with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Lif..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23f/john-rosemond-34680_declaration_we-have-forgotten-what-thomas-jefferson_3180640.jpg" --- # We have forgotten what Thomas Jefferson told us in 1776… ![“We have forgotten what Thomas Jefferson told us in 1776: that we are endowed by the Creator "with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness." Not happiness, mind you, but its pursuit. By implication Jefferson warned that if you pursue happiness…” quote by John Rosemond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23f/john-rosemond-34680_declaration_we-have-forgotten-what-thomas-jefferson_3180640.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23f/john-rosemond-34680_declaration_we-have-forgotten-what-thomas-jefferson_3180640.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23f/john-rosemond-34680_declaration_we-have-forgotten-what-thomas-jefferson_3180640.jpg) > ““We have forgotten what Thomas Jefferson told us in 1776: that we are endowed by the Creator "with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness." Not happiness, mind you, but its pursuit. By implication Jefferson warned that if you pursue happiness for someone else, you deny him the right to pursue it on his own.”” [John Rosemond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rosemond/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Jefferson asserted unalienable rights, emphasizing that the pursuit of happiness is personal, not to be imposed by others. **In simple terms:** Pursuing happiness for others denies their own right. Key Takeaway Respect individual freedom to seek happiness. Themes freedom rights individualism Mood thoughtful reflective Type philosophical political When to use this quote - personal decision making - public policy - education - community leadership Key Concepts natural rights political philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance personal happiness with societal expectations? - When is it appropriate to guide others toward happiness? A Different Perspective Pursuing happiness can conflict with collective welfare goals. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Certain Unalienable Rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain-unalienable-rights/) [Declaration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/declaration/) [Endowed Creator](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/endowed-creator-2605268/) [Jefferson Told](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jefferson-told-1984416/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life Liberty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-liberty/) [Pursuit Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pursuit-happiness/) [Unalienable rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unalienable-rights/) ## Related quotes > [“he amended the thought to say that men were “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights,” thus”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/he-amended-the-thought-to-say-that-men-were-endowed-by-their-creator/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable Rights,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/we-hold-these-truths-to-be-self-evident-that-all-men-are-created/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [“Jefferson is now remembered as the author of one of the English language’s most timeless passages, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-river-editors/jefferson-is-now-remembered-as-the-author-of-one-of-the-english/) [Charles River Editors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-river-editors/) > [“We hold these truths to be self-evident and federally taxable: that all men are created equal--just in different brackets; that they are endowed by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-anthony-gallagher-jr/we-hold-these-truths-to-be-self-evident-and-federally-taxable-that/) [Leo Anthony Gallagher Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-anthony-gallagher-jr/) > [Today, we stand as a united country and are much closer to the ideals set forth in our Constitution that all men are created…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-ryun/today-we-stand-as-a-united-country-and-are-much-closer-to-the-ideals/) [Jim Ryun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-ryun/) > [“The “pursuit of happiness” is such a key element of the “American (ideological) dream” that one tends to forget the contingent origin of this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/slavoj-i-ek/the-pursuit-of-happiness-is-such-a-key-element-of-the-american/) [Slavoj Žižek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/slavoj-i-ek/) > [“The Declaration of Independence says that ‘all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brigitte-gabriel/the-declaration-of-independence-says-that-all-men-are-created-equal/) [Brigitte Gabriel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brigitte-gabriel/) > [What makes us exceptional, what makes us America is our allegiance to an idea articulated in a declaration made more than two centuries ago.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/what-makes-us-exceptional-what-makes-us-america-is-our-allegiance-to-2/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [I think at the heart of the pro-life movement is the idea that all people are created equal, endowed by their creator with certain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-huckabee/i-think-at-the-heart-of-the-pro-life-movement-is-the-idea-that-all/) [Mike Huckabee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-huckabee/) > [We should remember that the Declaration of Independence is not merely a historical document. 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McKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-o-mckay/) [Browse all 685 Declaration quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/declaration/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We have forgotten what Thomas Jefferson told us in 1776: that we are endowed by the Creator \"with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.\" Not happiness, mind you, but its pursuit. 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