self-evident truths
Undeniable foundational claims
Self-evident truths are propositions so obviously true they require no proof or argument.
The phrase is most associated with the American Declaration of Independence: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.
What counts as self-evident varies—one person's obvious truth is another's contested claim.
The phrase often carries rhetorical force, asserting that disagreement itself is unreasonable.
- Declaration of IndependenceAmerica's founding proclamation
- all men are created equalDoctrine of inherent human equivalence
- axiomSelf-evident starting principle
- premiseFoundation for logical argument
- justiceFair treatment under law
fairness · dignity · equality · natural law · Enlightenment ideals · human rights · universal rights · a priori · liberty · inalienable rights · moral certainty · social contract · common sense · plain as day · goes without saying · foundationalism · intuition · epistemology
- American RevolutionDeclaration of Independence, Boston Tea Party, Continental Congress, founding fathers, Stamp Act
- principlesprinciple, ethics, tenet, morals, axiom
- truthsfacts, fact, reality, verity, verities
- logic termsif, then, valid, premises, and
- RationalismDescartes, cogito ergo sum, a priori, Spinoza, clear ideas
self-evident truthstheorems
Proven mathematical statements
logical deductions · inferences · deductions · corollaries · scientific discoveries
self-evident truthshidden truths
Concealed factual matters
hidden knowledge · esoteric wisdom · esoteric knowledge · mysteries · arcane knowledge
evident, truths, truth, truthful, truthfully, truthfulness, untruthful, untrue, evidence