Which truth was self-evident in the Declaration?

• A. That all men are created equal
• B. All people deserve to be taxed equally
• C. All rulers deserve obedience regardless of rights
• D. The government should be elected every year

Answer: (A)

The idea being tested is the claim that certain truths are so obvious they don’t need proof, as stated in the Declaration. The most famous of these self-evident truths is that all people are created equal. This line establishes a foundational belief about human worth and equality before the law, which underpins the later assertions that people possess unalienable rights and that government should protect those rights rather than violate them. It frames the purpose of government as deriving its legitimate authority from the people who are inherently equal.

The other statements don’t fit this self-evident claim. The Declaration doesn’t declare that everyone should be taxed equally, nor that rulers deserve obedience regardless of rights, nor that the government must be elected every year. Instead, it emphasizes that governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed and that people have the right to alter or abolish governments that threaten their rights.