Question 1 What does Professor Mary Beth Norton mean by the phrase “undeclared independence”? Answer “Undeclared independence” refers to how the unjustness of British policies placed the American colonies in a de facto state of independence. “Undeclared independence” refers to how American colonists showed their discontentment with English rule through protest actions prior to the Declaration. The phrase “undeclared independence” refers to Thomas Paine’s Common Sense pamphlet. “Undeclared independence” means that the colonies' declaration of independence from Great Britain was inevitable.