In my high school government class senior year, my teacher made the class recite and repeat the rights that are clearly stated in the first amendment of the Constitution of the United States. “The right of speech, the right of the press, the right to petition, the right to religion, and the right to assemble…” we rattled off the list, then started again. When I stepped out of high school and into the real world, I realized just how grateful I was for the rights that I had and the fact that I had a government that allowed me to live in liberty and observe these rights. The idea of human nature has been studied as early as the ancient Greeks, and continues to be studied today because government will always be important. It can either allow for liberty or turn into a vicious tyranny. And all behind it is the basis of government: liberty and personal rights. As members of society, or even just being human beings, these rights are ours. They are fundamental and crucially important. In order for mankind to achieve self liberty, a government or organization is necessary, but only through government that is chosen by and representative of the people of the society. Through this government that provides power to the people, liberty is preserved by protecting rights, giving a voice to the general society, and if need be, creating a way to keep in check or remove a corrupt government. Forward thinking John Locke described the government’s purpose in his Second Treatise on government. To this great thinker, political power is “a right of making laws…only for the public good” (Locke). This idea of organization is key to liberty. Government is made to protect the rights of a free person, not to remove or tarnish them. Thus, it is the type... ... middle of paper ... ...ingle woman to never live in fear that their basic, necessary rights will be taken away. As the Declaration of Independence states, everyone should be able to uphold the rights of “the enjoyment of life and liberty…and pursuing and obtaining happiness and safety” (“Declaration of Independence”). A well organized government can ensure these rights. Works Cited "Declaration of Independence." National Archives and Records Administration. Web. 01 Feb. 2012. . Fox, Frank W., and Clayne L. Pope. City upon a Hill: The Legacy of America's Founding. Provo, UT: BYU Academic Pub., 2010. Print. Locke, John. "Second Treatise of Civil Government by John Locke." Oregon State University. Web. 01 Feb. 2012. a.html>.
In Second Treatise of Government John Locke characterizes the state of nature as one’s ability to live freely and abide solely to the laws of nature. Therefore, there is no such thing as private property, manmade laws, or a monarch. Locke continues to say that property is a communal commodity; where all humans have the right to own and work considering they consume in moderation without being wasteful. Civil and Political Societies are non-existent until one consents to the notion that they will adhere to the laws made by man, abide by the rules within the community, allow the ability to appoint men of power, and interact in the commerce circle for the sake of the populace. Locke goes further to state that this could be null in void if the governing body over extends their power for the gain of absolute rule. Here, Locke opens the conversation to one’s natural right to rebel against the governing body. I personally and whole heartily agree with Locke’s principles, his notion that all human beings have the natural right to freedoms and the authority to question their government on the basis that there civil liberties are being jeopardized.
The character of the United States is illuminated by the Declaration of Independence. Thomas Jefferson wanted to build a government where people are free and where the government “derives its power from the consent of the governed and it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it” (Jefferson, 247). T...
Locke believed that the role of the government was to protect property and resolve disputes through administrative justice or by creating legislation. The government would be created through the consent of the people. Locke believed that freedom in the state was “having the liberty to order and use your property and to be free from the arbitrary will of another.” No one person can claim divine right to rule, because there is no way to determine if that person is actually divine or not. If government is not fulfilling their duty, the people have a right to overthrow it (i.e. revolution; was a major influence for American revolutionaries). For Locke, law is enlightening and liberating to humans. “law manifests what’s good for everybody.” The key reason for political society is for men to improve land. Locke believes men have mutual interest in coming together to protect land. Men must enter an agreement because there are a few bad apples, though not everyone is bad. If these few apples can be dealt with, their impact can be
In the beginning of the Declaration, Thomas Jefferson wrote about how when any form of government becomes “destructive”, it is the right of the people “to alter or abolish it, and to institute a new government…” Jefferson wrote very passionately about how all men have rights which are “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness”. Jefferson recognized that these rights are not always attainable, but when a government repeatedly ignores these rights completel...
We have the right to any freedoms because of “The Declaration of Independence”, we can be who we want to be. Everyone is unique and has varying views on everything, independence is a widely accepted and preferred that has become necessary, but it doesn’t have to be like that all the time.
Locke and Rousseau present themselves as two very distinct thinkers. They both use similar terms, but conceptualize them differently to fulfill very different purposes. As such, one ought not be surprised that the two theorists do not understand liberty in the same way. Locke discusses liberty on an individual scale, with personal freedom being guaranteed by laws and institutions created in civil society. By comparison, Rousseau’s conception portrays liberty as an affair of the entire political community, and is best captured by the notion of self-rule. The distinctions, but also the similarities between Locke and Rousseau’s conceptions can be clarified by examining the role of liberty in each theorist’s proposed state of nature and civil society, the concepts with which each theorist associates liberty, and the means of ensuring and safeguarding liberty that each theorist devises.
The Amendment I of the Bill of Rights is often called “the freedom of speech.” It provides a multitude of freedoms: of religion, of speech, of the press, to peacefully assemble, to petition the government. Religious freedom is vitally important to this day because it eliminates the problem of religious conflicts. Historically, many people died for their beliefs because their government only allowed and permitted one religion. T...
"We must have our freedom now. We must have the right to vote. We must have equal protection of the law." These were Martin Luther King Jr.’s words in
Citizens of any country are given some rights as well as responsibilities, and the United States of America is no exception. The Constitution (US Const) of the USA as well as the first ten amendments, also known as “Bill of Rights”, defines the framework of it. It is a supreme law that defines how Federal Government works.
We often wonder about the importance of government. Is it necessary? Does it really benefit society? The answer is yes. Many countries have diverse forms of government such as totalitarian, monarchy, theocracy, and much more. The United States of America specifically runs a democratic type of government. A democratic government gives power to the people. Citizens over the age of eighteen are allowed to elect leaders based on their individual opinions through voting rights. The main purpose of the American government is, to protect people’s inalienable rights to life, liberty, property, and the pursuit of happiness as our Founding Fathers intended.
According to John Locke everyone has natural rights. John Locke came up with natural rights, by thinking about what they could be for a long and vigorous time. Locke said that natural rights are “life, health, liberty, and possessions” (9). Life is something that no one can take away from anyone. Locke said, “no ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty, or possession” (9). Life is not an absolute right. An example of this is if there was a train full of ten thousand people about to hit a rock, and you are by the switch that could save the ten thousand people, but if you use the switch you are killing a twelve-year-old girl on the other track. Liberty is doing what ever someone wants to do, and they can’t be punished for
equal rights to all and promoting the good of the public. To the right of freedom of speech and
The first inception of individual rights began with the founding fathers of the United States, who had a vision in which all citizens would have the right to live in this country without being discriminated based on race, gender, religion, or sexual preference (US Constitution, 2010). These are basic human rights for which many people lost their lives to protect as this country was formed. Nonetheless, today one lives in a society in which one must fight to continue to posses those rights once again. Similar to the rest of history, when there have many examples of individual rights were not protected.
The First Amendment of the United States Constitution protects the right to freedom of religion and freedom of expression from government and or social intrusion. Freedom of expression contains of the rights to freedom of speech, press, assembly and to petition the government for a remedy of injustice, and the suggested rights of affiliation and belief. The Supreme Court elucidates the extent of the security afforded to these rights. The First Amendment has been interpreted by the Court as applying to the entire federal government even though it is only expressly applicable to Congress. Furthermore, the Court has interpreted, the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment as protecting the rights in the First Amendment from interference by state governments.
As citizens of the United States, and as people living under a democracy, the government has certain responsibilities to us. We are guaranteed union, justice, tranquility, defense, welfare, and liberty. These rights are all very important to the well being of our country and the states that exist in it. I feel that there are three that are a little more important than the others.