Humble
A Breath of Fresh Air
The purpose of government is to provide a system in which individuals’ give-up a portion of their freedom in order to pursue their needs and wants without the fears of insecurity in a state of anarchy. Over the course of time the world has seen countless variations of government, some proving to be more effective than others. Lao-Tzu, Thomas Jefferson, and Hannah Arendt each have interesting ideologies on government; one could liken them to a toothpaste, a toothbrush, and mouthwash. Like the process of brushing your teeth each writer can stand alone, but using all three together gives a person the best results.
In Lao-Tzu’s Thoughts from the Tao-te Ching, a person could compare him to Toothpaste. Lao-Tzu’s poetic style provides wisdom, however it is up to the reader to interpret the message for themselves. Much like the teachings, toothpaste does not do the cleaning, rather it is up to the person to grab the toothbrush and turn on the water. Lao-Tzu says that, “the Master acts without doing anything and teaches without saying anything” (Jacobus 22). This style of government is relaxed, requiring citizens to do things themselves, the leader provides guidance. Toothpaste is the foundation to a clean mouth, but without anything else, it is useless.
Thomas Jefferson exemplifies the Toothbrush. His use of parallelism throughout The Declaration of Independence as his main rhetorical device brings to mind the motion in which one would brush their teeth. A person brushes their teeth in small gentle circles repetitively, in the same manner Jefferson starts most of his paragraphs in a repetitive fashion using the words “He” or “For” (Jacobus 79). Jefferson says, “Whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or abolish it, and to institute new Government” (Jacobus 80). The food that was once good for a person has become destructive; brushing abolishes the old food and provides the mouth
The purpose of government is to provide a system in which individuals’ give-up a portion of their freedom in order to pursue their needs and wants without the fears of insecurity in a state of anarchy. Over the course of time the world has seen countless variations of government, some proving to be more effective than others. Lao-Tzu, Thomas Jefferson, and Hannah Arendt each have interesting ideologies on government; one could liken them to a toothpaste, a toothbrush, and mouthwash. Like the process of brushing your teeth each writer can stand alone, but using all three together gives a person the best results.
In Lao-Tzu’s Thoughts from the Tao-te Ching, a person could compare him to Toothpaste. Lao-Tzu’s poetic style provides wisdom, however it is up to the reader to interpret the message for themselves. Much like the teachings, toothpaste does not do the cleaning, rather it is up to the person to grab the toothbrush and turn on the water. Lao-Tzu says that, “the Master acts without doing anything and teaches without saying anything” (Jacobus 22). This style of government is relaxed, requiring citizens to do things themselves, the leader provides guidance. Toothpaste is the foundation to a clean mouth, but without anything else, it is useless.
Thomas Jefferson exemplifies the Toothbrush. His use of parallelism throughout The Declaration of Independence as his main rhetorical device brings to mind the motion in which one would brush their teeth. A person brushes their teeth in small gentle circles repetitively, in the same manner Jefferson starts most of his paragraphs in a repetitive fashion using the words “He” or “For” (Jacobus 79). Jefferson says, “Whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or abolish it, and to institute new Government” (Jacobus 80). The food that was once good for a person has become destructive; brushing abolishes the old food and provides the mouth
Cited: Jacobus, Lee A. "Arendt: Total Domination." A World of Ideas: Essential Readings for College Writers. Eighth ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin 's, 2010. 126. Print. Jacobus, Lee A. "Jefferson: The Declaration of Independence." A World of Ideas: Essential Readings for College Writers. Eighth ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin 's, 2010. 80. Print. Jacobus, Lee A. "Lao-Tzu: Thoughts from the Tao-te Ching." A World of Ideas: Essential Readings for College Writers. Eighth ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin 's, 2002. 22. Print.