Ryan Pust
Mrs. Boykin
AP English
16 November 2012
Thomas Jefferson and his Values Thomas Jefferson, in “A Letter from Jefferson to his Daughter” employs his love for his daughter, patsy, and knowledge. In this letter Jefferson uses emotional appeal and a wide variety of diction – superior to the common people – to reveal that he values knowledge and his daughter. Jefferson’s letter is emotionally cushioned with emotional diction such as the greeting, “My dear Patsy,” which would draw the attention of the reader to ensure that Jefferson does care about his daughter. In the second paragraph of Jefferson’s letter he writes “It is your future happiness which interests me,” as a father, it would seem like this would be the interest of most but the happiness he describes is not the happiness we think. The happiness he wants is the content feeling he will get by maintaining a good name trough the success of his daughter. If she is to grow up and be unsuccessful people might look at his family and ridicule him and her because he could not properly teach her how to become successful; although, he does care about her. Near the end of the second paragraph, Jefferson suggests that Patsy should take advantage of knowledge know because, “It is while we are young that the habit of industry is formed.” This means the knowledge we gain is best obtained at an early age and “If not then, it never is afterward.” This statement is a true testament to Jefferson’s reason for writing to his daughter, he wants her to be knowledgeable so she can live a great life and not end up like the common people of their time. In the first sentence of the third paragraph Jefferson writes, “I Do not like your saying that you are unable to read the ancient print of your Livy, except with the aid of your master.” Jefferson believes that she should be able to read, unlike the common people; Patsy comes from wealth and back in the 1700’s only the wealthy could read. Later in the