The concept of rights, what a right is, and what a right entails, evolved significantly over time from the Glorious Revolution of 1687-1688, to the American Revolution of 1773-1781, and eventually to the era of abolition and Frederick Douglass in the nineteenth century. The Glorious Revolution in Britain consisted of British Nobles and Parliament publishing the Declaration of Rights seeking greater autonomy and freedom from the lofty weight and absolutism of the seemingly arbitrary decisions of the king. The American Revolution led to a significant debate over rights, whether to create a Bill of Rights or not, and to whom rights apply and in what ways. Finally, with Frederick Douglass’ nineteenth century abolitionist narrative, his discussion of natural rights and the implicit or mandated laws and privileges of humanity and Christianity. The act of writing and recording rights ultimately facilitated great gains for the cause of human liberty and personal autonomy, the first assertion of one’s own autonomy with the Nobles of the Glorious Revolution, …show more content…
This transformed to the American Revolution and the debate over what rights should be, the dangers of recording rights and to whom the rights apply, resulting in the further limiting of governmental powers and what the federal government can assert on an individual. Then finally culminating with Frederick Douglass’ ideas that there were natural rights that could be recognized in the American Constitution and that African-Americans were entitled to them, which while not seeing immediate success, led to significant strides later. The precedent for English rights are traditionally traced back to the Magna Carta of 1215 and much credit is given to it in terms of the example it set for the