Self-Evident: How Benjamin Franklin’s two-word edit changed American history

The Declaration of Independence.

Summary: Benjamin Franklin’s edit of the Declaration of Independence, replacing “sacred and undeniable” with “self-evident,” shifted the philosophical foundation of the American project from religious conviction to Enlightenment rationality. This change, influenced by Franklin’s empiricist views and the ideas of David Hume, emphasized the importance of reason and self-evident truths in shaping the nation’s principles. Franklin’s edit, while retaining a reference t...