Political Theory of John Locke

John Locke: Account of Political Society

What would the American government be like today if it was not for the mind and political theory of John Locke? Some historians and philosophers believe that without John Locke our government would only be a shadow of what it is today. Arguably, one of his most important political and philosophical works was his Two Treatises of Government. There he argues that the function of the state is to protect the natural rights of its citizens, primarily to protect the right to property. John Locke, in many eyes, can be viewed as one of the father’s of Democracy. He embraced many of ideas in his theories on the state of nature and the rise of political society today. In Locke’s political society, the government is founded up a social contract by which the individuals of the state make a "social contract" with the government, and enter into it freely, to ensure that their rights in the state of nature are protected. Taking that into consideration, many questions and problems arise concerning Locke’s claims. For example, we have to justify the legitimacy of the "social contract" and validate its benefits and shortcomings.

But why would people form a social contract? Humans beings decide to form a society out of the state of nature because there must be unity among men in order to protect one another, and so that they may punish offenders of justice or the good life. Locke says that, "the only way whereby anyone diverts himself of his natural liberty and put on the bonds of civil society is by agreeing with other men to join and unite into a community, for their comfortable, safe, and peaceful living one amongst another", (Locke Ch. 8,95). Men do this under the r...

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..., but as a matter of convenience and in order to protect their property.

Altogether, John Locke was recognized as a great political philosopher during his own lifetime, and his theories would spread across the world and influence countless other individuals, as well as nations themselves. The basic points of Locke’s system of government were that there should be a constitutional government, in which the power goes up. The people allow the ruler to govern, and it is with their consent that he is able to do so. But the one thing that makes Locke’s theory different is that society has the power to overthrow the government. Since a majority created it, they have the power to remove it.

Works Cited

Locke, John. “The Second Treatise of Government.” Two Treatises of Government.

Edited by Mark Goldie. 1993. (London: Everyman); pp. 113-240