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Jefferson's Work Thomas Jefferson was a young delegate, well-respected though shy. As a lawyer, he had gained early notoriety through an essay he wrote in 1774 in which he argued for colonial independence. As a member of the Second Continental Congress, he spoke rarely but nonetheless impressed his colleagues with his passionate belief in the cause of independence. The document he crafted drew from the political philosophies of Enlightenment thinker John Locke, in particular the ideas of natural rights and the social contract theory. Locke believed that people have natural rights-rights that belong to them simply because they are human, not because kings or governments have granted them these rights. He also put forward his own view of the social contract theory. According to Locke, people form governments to protect their natural rights, but they do not surrender control over their government. If a government fails to act in the best interests of the people, the people have the right to revolt and replace that government with a new one.