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What Are John Locke's Beliefs On Government

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John Locke DBQ When reading the Declaration of Independence it is apparent that Thomas Jefferson drew inspiration from John Locke’s Two Treatises on Government. This inspiration is apparent from the way Jefferson drafted our nation’s founding document. John Locke’s Two Treatises on Government heavily influenced Thomas Jefferson’s rationale for the propriety of America’s separation from England. In John Locke’s writing the Two Treatises on Government he brings up the point that the “legislative acts against the trust reposed in them when they endeavor to invade the property of the subject” (Locke ¶ 2). When John Locke mentions this he is referring to any area of government that decides to take up residence in any civilian's home and/or property. Thomas Jefferson references when he explains the illegal laws he allowed Parliament to pass. Specifically, “quartering large bodies of armed troops among us [the colonists]” (Declaration of Independence ¶ 16). When Jefferson mentions this …show more content…

He also mentions that the government should not “take away and destroy the property of the people” (Locke ¶ 3). When listing the many faults of the king Thomas Jefferson states that the king “has burnt our [the colonists’] towns” (Declaration of Independence ¶ 26). In including this statement, Jefferson is trying to emphasize the point that the king has infringed the right to property and therefore must be overruled. To conclude, Thomas Jefferson has derived many inspirations from John Locke’s Two Treatises of Government when drafting the Declaration of Independence. Locke’s treatises offered many reasons to explain the people’s right and obligation to overthrow the government, which the founding fathers used to prove their point on breaking away from the king’s rule. Both documents had a huge impact on shaping and inspiring the way government and legislature work

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