Thomas Hobbes and John Locke were two of the greatest political and philosophical thinkers of their time and ours. Ideas like these have shaped governments throughout history and still hold true today. They had extremely different views on government‚ but the bases of their arguments were similar. They used reason to justify their ideas‚ rather than divine right. Although both men acknowledged that there was a God‚ He played a very small part in their ideologies. The philosophers each had an impact
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European philosophers began debating the question of the ideal form of the state. Among those thinkers were the philosophers Thomas Hobbes‚ John Locke‚ and Jean-Jacques Rousseau who all differ in the manner in which they view the ideal form of the state. Hobbes believed the power of the monarch should be absolute in order to maintain peace in the state‚ whereas Locke believed that government existed only to protect its people and to allow them to have right to life‚ liberty‚ and property‚ however‚ Rousseau
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British philosopher John Locke in the late 17th Century created the doctrine of Empiricism. Locke argued that human nature was mutable and that knowledge was gained through accumulated experience rather than by accessing some sort of outside truth. In his work “An Essay Concerning Human Understanding” he claimed that the mind begins as a clear slate and experience shapes it. He does not support the claim that humans have ideas that are innate. Locke believed in order for humans to know anything
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In this paper‚ I will examine the political philosophies of Thomas Hobbes and John Locke. I will investigate both men’s ideas individually and offer my own views on their theories. I will conclude the paper by comparing and contrasting the notions introduced in their respective writings. Thomas Hobbes was born in Wiltshire‚ England in 1588. He lived in one of the most unsettled periods in English history. Following a rebellion against King Charles‚ there resulted a civil war‚ which began in 1642
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Enlightenment‚ freedom‚ and Political rights: creating a “just” society Hobbes: “life is nasty‚ brutish‚ and short...” Pessimistic about humans fear of anarchy--bad for economics Ultimate power with strong ruler “Leviathan” John Locke: “Wherever law ends‚ tyranny begins.” Rights: “life‚ liberty‚ and property...” optimistic about humans IF equality and tolerance.... ultimate power with people Thomas Hobbe’s In Leviathan‚ Thomas Hobbe’s argued that ordinary people were incapable of
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A Comparative Essay of John Locke and Karl Marx Regarding The Privatization of Religion Citizen’s views on today’s hotly debated topics such as: gay marriage‚ abortion‚ capital punishment‚ immigration‚ etc… are frequently affected by religious beliefs. This will be an examination of two different theorist’s opinions of how religion and political society affect each other including contrast and comparisons between the two views. John Locke was a British political theorist. Much of our American
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the most influential political philosopher and social contract theorists of all time‚ John Locke and Thomas Hobbes both used ‘The State of Nature’ as a medium in order to understand the basic human nature and natural human rights in their writings. Both‚ then used their own understanding of the human nature in order to determine and justify the ideal form of government‚ its role and its powers. However‚ Locke and Hobbes reach markedly different conclusions. Hobbes argues that every man should concede
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society is set up to protect their people’s rights and liberty and make sure that everyone is equal. However‚ there are different approaches as to how a society should be set up to protect those rights and ensure equality throughout the society. John Locke and Jean Jacques Rousseau both offer different approaches to how a government should be assembled. Locke’s central belief‚ in Second Treatise of Government‚ is that society is set up to protect an individual’s private property right. People enter into
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In analyzing the works of Plato and John Locke I feel that Plato presents a more accurate idealism in how a society should be maintained. Plato puts ultimate power in those with the highest knowledge. I feel that this concept is necessary in order to have a successful regime‚ thus I support in my argument. Plato’s theory hand picks guardians to become Philosopher Kings. These kings are those with "Gold" Souls‚ and in fact do not wish to become such a hierarchal figure. Plato chooses Guardians who
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with this scientific method is the Mind’s Eye Model of Perception‚ which is the theory that any object you look at is just your own perception and others will have a different perception of the seemingly same object. Three philosophers of the time‚ Locke‚ Hume‚ and Kant‚ were big proponents of the scientific method and used it in each of their ideas behind morality. While all three follow this way of inquiry‚ Kant’s theories abide by the method better because he proposes
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