Write a paragraph overview of the purpose and structure of the Declaration of Independence.

Explanation:

The purpose of the Declaration of Independence is to declare the reasons and causes of the colonists to separate themselves from Britain. The Declaration begins with a short introduction called the Preamble. The Preamble explains the reason for the document, which is to declare the causes that have created the need for the colonies to "dissolve the political bands" with England, and to create itself as an independent nation. The preamble leads into the next section that is "long train of abuses and usurpations". This section describes how the people will take action in creating a new government for themselves. This gives the reasons of the revolution by explaining all of the wrongs that have been committed against the colonies by England. After these facts have been listed the next section details the ways that the colonies have responded to England's actions by trying to help the king to understand the injustice of England's actions. The final section lists specific functions that our new government has the power to carry out as a new nation among the other nations among the world.

the expansion of the rule of empires over other territories took place as a result of several reasons including economic, ethnocentric, political, and religious, and exploratory purposes.

in terms of economic purposes: imperial governments aimed to maximize profits and with that purpose they neeeded cheap labor, access to or control of markets to sell or buy products. they also desired to find natural resources (precious metals and land). in the awake of   industrial revolution, dependent colonies provided the necessary raw materials that european factories and market needed to manufacture products.  

ethnocentric: many territories were conquered by imperial territories in an attempt to spread their cultures, values and belief as they considered them to be superior. in the late 19th century, for example, european powers held   the racist belief that inferior races should be conquered in order to “civilize” them.

political: another reason that drove conquer and expansion was patriotism and growing imperial power. it refers to national prestige, pride, and security. empires sought strategic territory to ensure access for their navies and armies around the world.

religious: the aim of converting new member of other religions was another factor that prompted expansion.   christian missionaries from europe established churches in conquered territories during the nineteenth century. thus, they spread western cultural values. furthermore, the imperial nation’s language was spread as well, through educational and religious interactions.

exploratory: imperial nations or their citizens aimed to explore territory that was unknown to them,   for different purposes including medical or scientific research, however, at the very   beginning, they did it to embark on adventure. furthermore, imperial explorers sought to discover, map, and claim territory before their imperial competition did, for national and personal glory as well as to realize the imperialist goal of expansion.