Out of all the political philosophers that I read about, I think Locke had the greatest influence on society and government today. John Locke influenced society with his idea that all babies are born “clean slates”. Even today, many people still believe that the environment in which a child grows up in is what forms him or her into the person they become later on in life. Another idea Locke had that influenced society was the belief regarding political freedom. Having political freedom is one of the most valued things this country offers its citizens. Being able to vote for our president, having the ability to run for any position in our government, and being able to speak our minds regarding our government and issues that surround it- is very important in America today. Political freedom is what makes our country stand out, and it is what other countries envy as well. Because John Locke strongly believed in political freedom, it positively influenced our government and society in the United States. Lastly, the natural rights that Locke came up with exist in our Constitution even in this modern world. The rights to “life, liberty, and property” are enforced in society as well as in our government. Nobody but one’s own self has rights to their own liberty, life, and property, and I think that that concept created by John Locke had the greatest influence on our culture today.
With which of the philosophers do you disagree the most? Why?
Out of all the philosophers, I disagree with Hobbes the most. This is because I do not believe that his idea of exchanging freedom for security was a reasonable form of government. I believe that people have the right to criticize a ruler’s policies, and Hobbes did not believe that. The fact that Thomas Hobbes wrote a novel on how the government must be absolute and extremely powerful makes me uneasy, because I agree with Montesquieu, and believe in his system of checks and balances among the government. The spread of power in the branches of government is what I find to be important. This is why I do not find Hobbes’ idea of giving up all power to an absolute monarch agreeable. However, I do agree with the belief that power comes from the people, and that civil authority is far more superior than religious authority. Although I agree with Hobbes on a few things, I still disagree with Thomas Hobbes the most out of all philosophers. The idea of an absolute ruler, a social contract, and the concept of having an all-powerful government are what make me disagree with Hobbes the most out of the philosophers.
What is the connection between the ideas of the Enlightenment and nationalism and democracy?
There is a widespread connection between the ideas of the Enlightenment, nationalism, and democracy. These three ideas are connected by the idea of “power of the people”, and the fact that they brought people together. In the Enlightenment, people looked for ways to share discoveries and learn new ideas. Common ideas that people had spread amongst communities during the Enlightenment because of the eagerness they had regarding their education. Nationalism brought people together because of the shared love everyone had for their country. Pride in their nation, the shared value of patriotism, and loyalty was what brought citizens together to enforce nationalism in their country. Democracy relates to the Enlightenment and nationalism because this form of government brings people together and enforces the power among them. Democracy, being a type of government that ensures power among the common people and social equality, has a connection with the ideas of the Enlightenment and nationalism. All of these three ideas create a bond between common people and enforce equal power among the citizens of a community.
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
Locke was actually the first to suggest the three branches of government which Thomas Jefferson interpreted in the Bill of Rights. Also, Locke’s idea of a people-run government had a huge influence over the United States Declaration of Independence and Constitution, and he also thought that it was necessary for a country to thrive and flourish, and without the people, the country would perish and fall. For him, the state of nature was a state of full natural rights so that there had to be a compelling advantage in any social afreement that would replace it. He also exercised a profound influence on political philosophy, particularly on modern liberalism. He had once said, “man is able to have these rights, life liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” Locke was arguably the most influential of the four philosophers.…
- 451 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
Voltaire is one that influenced the American government. He believed in freedom of speech and religion, which is where we get this from. Locke believed that everyone was equal. Which I guess really never influenced our government that much because we have dealt with slavery and yet today we still have issues with equality.…
- 274 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
John Locke wanted everyone to have the "right to life, liberty, and property" which is used in the Declaration of Independence as the "right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." His ideas of the social contract, in which everyone in a society is accountable to one another, and the idea of governments deriving their power from the consent of the governed were both revolutionary concepts in 1776 that made their way into the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.…
- 132 Words
- 1 Page
Satisfactory Essays -
Thomas Hobbes believed mankind good and evil depended on what the individual loved and hated. He believed that life in the state of nature is "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short." (119) Mankind was naturally equal in power of mind and body so no individual was capable of dominating another. In a strictly natural condition there was no justice or injustice because everyone had their right to seek and take whatever is good and dispose of whatever was bad for them. He was for absolute monarchy. Thomas Hobbes believed that “authoritarian governments were necessary to keep human beings’ worst impulses under control.”(119) He did not believe that a large group of men would agree with one and other and peacefully run a country. Hobbes opposed constitutionalism because of his pessimistic view of human nature. The passages in Hobbes writings show that he did not desire the possibility of anything like modern totalitarianism. For Hobbes, any division of power was an invitation to chaos.…
- 551 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
John Locke (1632-1704) is a Philosopher and Physician. He was known as one of the most affective Founding Father of Enlighten movement. Because of his past occupation, who used to persuade to become a doctor, he understood how people's lives, and what was the best form of government that they need. Locke's theories in the Second Treaty of Government and An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, and his State of Nature, for examples, have influenced people and government system with his belief of man's political nature that people have certain right in society and they willingly give up their highly valued autonomy in order to live peacefully and comfortable under one united government that enforces rules and regulation that protect its people…
- 901 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
John Locke, an English philosopher was a major part of the growth of the rebublican view during the Enlightenment era.1 Locke was a brilliant teacher at Oxford University and wrote many books about education.3 Locke’s excellent teachings and books allowed his opinions to be valued by many people.3 Locke made an impact on political ideals by publishing the “The Reasonableness…
- 671 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
John Locke main idea was every individual’s equal rights and fairly equal government. Locke believed that the individuals of the same species and rank should be treated equally within one another without subjection or subordination. He says that all men are naturally in “a state of perfect freedom to order their actions, and dispose of their possessions and persons, as they think fit, within the bounds of the law of nature…” he is saying that men have the right to control their own freedom. Locke appears in recommend the legislative and executive branches to the right to create a new government if the old one fails. Locke wrote these words in 1689 and it had an impact in the declaration of independence 8 years later. This shows that John Locke’s ideas had an effect on our government today. (Document A)…
- 657 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Hobbes added to the ideas of democracy by creating the idea that all men are born bad with an urge for war. He stated that in order to have a stable society, government would be required to strictly watch and govern each citizen. He writes that man should give down their power to a much bigger government in order to maintain a single power that can help control the masses. This bigger…
- 507 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
John Locke believed that every man has natural rights that include the right to live and the right to property. He also said people should have freedom and that no man should be a slave. This could have influenced Declaration of Independence because it says, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” This shows that they both thought people were equal and should have access to basic rights such as life.…
- 444 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
John Locke is one of the most influential writers and political philosophers in history. On top of that he is most likely the most influential in the forming of the American constitution. Many of the ideas that Locke had formed were used in the creation of the United States Constitution. He left an abundance of thoughts and ideas on human understanding, religion, economics, and politics that still influence the structure, environment, and operation of public administration today.…
- 396 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
The idea of people as citizens rather than as subjects originates in 16th century Europe, during the Early Modern Period. During this period, European social order was in a state of flux as the rule of kings was confronted with a persistent and determined challenges defined by social forces that were pushing for more secular and democratic governments. There were both individuals and events that today may be seen as powerful drivers of those forces, and among them are John Locke, the Enlightenment, and the French Revolution.…
- 865 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Locke's Second Treatise of Government, by far, is his most influential and important piece of writing. In it he set forth his theory of natural law and natural right. He shows that there does exist a rational purpose to government, and one need not rely on "mysticism and mystery." Against anarchy, Locke saw his job as one who must defend government as an institution. Locke's object was to insist not only that the public welfare was the test of good government and the basis for properly imposing obligations on the citizens of a country, but also that the public welfare made government necessary.…
- 1190 Words
- 5 Pages
Better Essays -
John Locke is a predominate figure in the history of political theory and philosophy, among other things he is largely known for his work titled The Two Treaties of Government, which was published anonymously in December of 1689. His publication argued in favor of the Glorious Revolution, with intent to defend the Whig party, to which he had close ties. The Second Treatise in particular was written to justify resistance to king Charles II and it’s political theory and philosophy was enormously influential to later works, such a The Federalist Papers. The Federalist Papers was series of essays, anonymously published defending the Constitution, written and published 1787-1788, the authors, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay, not…
- 1213 Words
- 5 Pages
Powerful Essays -
Locke believed that people are born a free human being. His main idea is his writing was that if a government should fail the people of the country have the right to become or create a new government. The same rules apply if the citizens decide the government is using their power in the wrong ways. As well as the other philosophers and more to come as I write, John Locke wrote many books and was a very influential enlightenment thinker. In one of his books, Second Treatise on Civil Government, written in 1690, he was talking about the dissolution of government. He says,”When the government is dissolved, the people are at liberty to provide themselves, by erecting a new legislative,... they have not only a right to to get out of a failed government, but to prevent it.”(Locke) Okay, that literally is almost a restatement of what I said about his beliefs earlier. This explains that if a government was to be unruly or disrespectful to their people, the people have the right to rebel and create a new law making body. The interesting thing about our government is that if we were in fact to rebel against our government, which we have right to, the government would also then have to right to shut us down and stop the crusade we started. What he is saying is true but what Locke is also saying is what we do with our individual rights can always come back to bite us in the…
- 1250 Words
- 5 Pages
Better Essays -
How did John Locke influence Checks and Balances, and how does it apply to today’s everyday life? Locke thought everyone needed to form a society together where there is a system of checks and balances. The main problem in the state of nature is that there aren’t any impartial judges and there’s no clear interpretation of law. Creating a society solves these problems. Locke also felt that the people should elect a series of representatives to keep things in order, not place all the power in the hands of one. Locke influenced Checks and Balances by the simple common sense realization that each word has an equal opposite. John Locke is the father of modern empirical science that demands that both sides of any and all issues be explicitly explored. In most of, if not all of Locke’s political theories, Thomas Hobbes’ theories are all contradicted.…
- 822 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays