John Locke's Second Treatise Of Government
Locke believed that the citizens had a right and responsibility to overthrow an unjust government. In the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson says, "That whenever any form of
New England was fed up with the Church of England and the Puritans wanted to recreate their own religion which they thought was more what God had believed was the intended belief. They both decided that neither of them like the way England was set up and said that England was no good for their beliefs. They planned to leave England and go to the new world to set up a life where their children had the chance to be raised in a perfect society with no corruption. Concentrated on town life and industries, they made a living off of fishing, whaling and shipbuilding. Whale oil was key because it made their lamps.
The philosophe, John Locke, believed that individual freedom would create a much better government. Locke argued that are free in a state of nature and that they have the right to preserve that freedom. The easiest way to do that is to create a legislative branch that makes the laws. To also make an executive branch that carries out those laws (Doc A). If the government is failing them, they have the right to prevent that failure.
Locke believed that people were born with natural rights that included the right to life, liberty, and property. Locke argued that people formed governments to protect their natural rights, so the best kind of government was one with limited power and was accepted by all citizens. Locke said that a government has an obligation to the people it governs, therefore, the people have a right to revolt if the government fails at its obligations. Like many other Enlightenment philosophers, John Locke’s ideas reflected on the checks and balance system as well as the Declaration of Independence. For example, in the Declaration of Independence, it says, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
Identify the ideas and works of the following Enlightenment thinkers: 1. Discuss the contrasting ideas of Hobbes and Rousseau According to the video “Enlightenment Thinkers”,Thomas Hobbes believed man is naturally evil and therefore needs an absolute monarch to govern and make choices for them (Mr. Byrd). “Enlightenment Thinkers” also mentions how Rousseau held that a social contract exists between the people and the government where the government should protect the people’s rights, once government oversteps its boundaries the people have the right to rebel (Mr. Byrd). 2.
John Locke's Second Treatise of Civil Government,
A country based on an individual's natural rights and free will, in the land of opportunity, being an American citizen has a very important role in our society. Electing local and national government officials, and making changes in your community is evident through your democratic elections. But what key ideas and elements lay the foundation for a functional and effective governing body? The fundamental ideas of Baron de Montesquieu, John Locke, and the English Bill of Rights all preach the same values of limited government run by the people, and are all assets that were indoctrinated in the creation of the U.S. constitution.
In the republic democracy of the United States of America, the Founders of our Nation created a system of separation of powers with checks and balances. Our Founders used the philosophy of John Locke in Second Treatise of Government, to give us our “natural rights” and what the state of nature means. For John Locke, the legislature and executive branches must remain separate, for a country to tread past the state of nature and into a governing body. He gives clear insight to what powers each of the branches should hold. Including what should happen in a civil crisis or emergency.
He continues to discuss how people relinquish their rights to a central point of authority to retain other rights. In the second chapter, he discusses how it is the obligation of the people to punish anyone who chooses to harm the rights of others. Locke continues to discuss how when a government decides to overstep its limits, the people have a responsibility to overthrow such a government. This is another aspect of Locke’s ideas that are incorporated into the Declaration of Independence- “ That whenever any form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness.”
John Locke's Second Treatise of Government is a work which could be considered modern in nature. Throughout the book Locke espouses ideals such as a the fundamentally equal nature of all humans, and the purpose of government not as a religious institution, but as a tool of the people. Ideas such as those articulated in Locke's Second Treatise were a driving force behind the events which eventually lead to the Glorious revolution. The events which lead to the gradual decline of the British crown and the rise of Parliamentary power were essentially textbook Lockean situations, in which an executive power attempts to reach out of its established bounds and is ousted by the people. In these cases the role of the Whig Party is that of the nation
John Locke thought that it is the citizen 's right to overthrow the government. Just like how the Colonists overthrew the king of England, and made a new government. The colonists of North America in the 1700s were getting
John Locke was a philosopher and political scientist. He had many interests and produced a number of writings that influenced future leaders. One of these leaders was Thomas Jefferson, who was involved with the aid of America and the act gaining independence from Britain. The Declaration of Independence and Locke’s views on government contain many similar aspects. These ideas includes the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness (natural rights); the protection that is provided by the government for these rights; and the altering or abolishment of government if it fails to provide and protect the rights of the people.
For centuries people have struggled with many temptations and decisions in life that could change their life in a way that could be good or bad. The decisions that a person makes determines who they are as a person and how others will look at them later in life. These characteristics that they will develop can often be given symbolism in a story. Hawthorne did this by covertly pairing his characters with colors that described them. These colors play an important role in comprehending the meaning behind the characters in “Young Goodman Brown.”
If the government rests on consent, and if consent is ever removed, then the people have the right to revolt, to cast off one government and replace it with another government. The people get the idea of legitimate government of being limited. Government can’t do anything that’s limited in its powers, which come from its work. There is religious toleration, separation of church and state, which all comes from Locke, and the notion of constitutional democracies that limit
John Locke is an enlightened political philosopher whose explanations to his ideas remains profoundly influential. Locke believes people should have the right to do anything they want without the government enforcing them to do a task. In The Second Treatise, Locke discusses some vital concepts of his thinking, beginning with a discussion of the State of Nature. He explains that humans move from a state of nature characterized by perfect freedom and are governed by reason to a civil government in which the authority is vested in a legislative and executive power. In the State of Nature, men are born equal, to have perfect liberty to maintain.
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