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John Locke's Two Treatises On Government

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John Locke Essay
Joseph Gabriel
Introduction To Political Theory
Dr. Bagchi
20NOV2015

John Locke's most influential political writings can be found within the work entitled Two Treatises on Government. Within the Two Treatises on Government, Locke talks about the state of nature, the law of nature, rights to pursuit life, liberty, and property. John Locke believes that the good life is obtainable by forming a social contract to escape the state of nature. Through this social contract, man would pursuing the good life by establishing a civil society or government in which life, liberty, and property rights are its founding principles. For John Locke, the state of nature may be simple at first glance. Within the Two Treatises, Locke states “want [lack] of a common judge, with authority, puts all persons in a state of nature”. He also writes “Men living according to reason, without a common superior on earth, to judge between them, is properly the state of nature.” (Two Treatises 2.19) If this is accepted as Locke’s definition of the state of nature, then one must conclude that with the lack of a legitimate political authority capable of judging disputes according to law and reason, the state of nature would exist. Locke's state of nature is more of a theological …show more content…

A contract becomes void if either side defaults on the agreement. A government that violates the rights of man, defaulting on the contract, releases him from their duty to support and obey the government. In this case, Locke states that man has a right to rebel against it. As for the type of government, the absolute and arbitrary power maintained by complete monarchs violates mans’ rights to liberty. Also, by monarchs taxing their subjects without their consent they are violating their property rights. This gives man a right to revolution against absolute

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