John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, Jean Jacques Rousseau

Throughout history there have been many philosophers who have developed many different ideas and concepts. One important group is the classical liberal/social contract theorists who worked and developed their ideas during the 1600s. John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, Jean Jacques Rousseau, and Immanuel Kant were all critical contributors to the liberal ideas that have been the basis for many governmental actions since this time. These three philosophers agreed on many things, but also had many disagreements leading to the further development of their fundamental ideas. The ideas and concepts fundamental to these prominent liberal thinkers have had an impact on the politics of many countries throughout the world and throughout history, and the United
In his philosophy Hobbes argues that in a state of nature, a state existing without government, man will be inherently evil. In a state of nature, Hobbes famously argues, the lives of men are “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short”. Therefore, in order to protect their fundamental rights, citizens will enter into a social contract in order to guarantee their security and thus forming the state. Hobbes argues that the only entity that would be capable of maintaining such a fragile peace would be a sovereign with absolute power. Hobbes maintains that in order for the social contract to remain intact and for society to maintain some semblance of peace and order, the sovereign must have absolute power. Hobbes also states that no one has the right, on ideological grounds, to overthrow the sovereign. Although a citizen may violently resist the sovereign in order to protect their life, no one has any right to change the form of government that is currently being executed. The absolutist ideals that Hobbes furthers in his political philosophy come into direct disagreement with many other liberal thinkers of his
Rousseau argues that in a state of nature men are “noble savages” who live free and equal lives, but are ultimately corrupted by the evil forces and pressures of society. Rousseau argues that the purpose of government is to bring people into harmony with one another. He maintains that citizens of the state must be united by the government under the “General Will”. Rousseau states that representation is not adequate enough to maintain the general will and that in order for society to be brought into harmony citizens must take an active role in their civic duties creating a system of almost direct democracy in order to enact the general will. Ultimately the general will is a commonly held will amongst the citizens of the state that will lead to furthering common goods for the majority of citizens of the state. According to Rousseau, it is the duty of governments to be responsive to and complicit with the general will. Rousseau is clearly in favor of a direct democracy arguing that although the British people may be the freest people on earth their representative democracy does them more harm than good. Rousseau also argued that people are the components that make up a nation and not individuals and that the wills of individuals must be subordinate to the general or collective will in order for the social