Introduction / Context:
The United States Declaration of Independence, adopted in 1776, is a key document in the history of democracy and human rights. In one of its most famous passages, it lists certain unalienable rights that governments are meant to protect. This question asks which rights are mentioned in that passage. Understanding this phrase helps learners connect American revolutionary ideas with broader discussions of natural rights and equality.
Given Data / Assumptions:
- The document in question is the United States Declaration of Independence.
- The focus is on rights explicitly listed together as unalienable.
- The options include three specific rights that are often quoted as a group.
- An all of the above choice and one clearly incorrect option are also provided.
Concept / Approach:
In its famous passage, the Declaration states that all men are created equal and that they are endowed with certain unalienable rights, among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. These three rights are presented together as examples of God given or natural rights that no government should unjustly take away. They represent personal safety, freedom, and the ability to seek fulfillment. Therefore, any question that asks about two rights or more from this list can be correctly answered by recognising that life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness all appear in the text. The all of the above option therefore correctly summarises the three separate options given.
Step-by-Step Solution:
1. Recall the famous phrase from the Declaration, which names life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness as unalienable rights.
2. Look at the options and identify life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness listed separately.
3. Notice that each of these three rights is actually part of the same group in the original document.
4. Recognise that the all of the above option simply combines these three correct rights into one answer choice.
5. Ignore the clearly incorrect option about titles of nobility, which the Declaration does not list as a right.
6. Select all of the above as the correct answer that includes all three rights mentioned.
Verification / Alternative check:
To verify, learners can remember or look up the exact wording used in many textbooks: life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. This phrase appears again and again in discussions of the Declaration and of human rights in general. No other rights are commonly attached to this exact trio in the same famous sentence. Titles of nobility are not presented as rights in the Declaration and, in fact, later constitutional provisions restrict such titles. Because the three individual options all appear in the original phrase, and the all of the above choice gathers them together, that combined choice correctly reflects the text.
Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Choosing only liberty would ignore life and pursuit of happiness, which are also named in the same passage.
Selecting only life would leave out the other two rights listed alongside it in the text.
Picking only pursuit of happiness would again miss life and liberty, which stand beside it in the famous sentence.
Claiming that the right to own titles of nobility is mentioned is clearly incorrect and contrary to the spirit of equality expressed in the Declaration.
Common Pitfalls:
Some students may remember part of the phrase but not the whole line, leading them to choose a single right that they recall most clearly. Others might confuse the Declaration of Independence with the Bill of Rights and think of freedoms like speech or religion instead. To avoid these mistakes, it is helpful to memorise the exact trio together: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This grouping matches the text closely and makes it easy to see that all three items listed in the first options should be selected together using all of the above.
Final Answer:
The correct answer is
All of the above.
Discussion & Comments