The authors of the Virginia Declaration of Rights, the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Paine’s Common Sense and the United States Constitution pulled from many different sources during the infancy of these invaluable documents. They used pieces such as Hobbes’ Leviathan, Locke’s Second Treatise on Government, Rousseau’s Of The Social Contract, and Montesquieu’s The Spirit of the Laws as inspiration for America’s fundamental government. Each of these influential political philosophers were instrumental in making our government what it is today. Hobbes brought the ideas of natural equality, a strong, powerful government, and the principle that governments must be able to protect the people to American political philosophy. Locke added that …show more content…
Rousseau states “ Man is born free; and everywhere he is in chains” and “A country cannot subsist well without liberty, nor liberty without virtue.” Rousseau’s impacts on American government include his position that people are what make a nation. Buildings and seats do not decide whether or not one votes, that is the role of people. What Rousseau means by bring the people into chaos is that the people must think for themselves and not just let those who are deemed more educated decide for them. As America is a Democratic Republic, the root word democracy is used, which means that the majority of the country’s wishes must be thought of and respected. He also believes that while an individual 's ideas must be recognized, they must stand down to ensure the majority 's vote is respected. This is shown in the way we vote, and the way that congress passes bills. Americans have a voice, but when the majority speaks, it is done. While the representation of the people is appreciated, the appointed representative must make sure that his ideas are in alignment with those whom he represents. When one who is placed in a position of authority over a select group of people does not respect their will, he loses his title of representative and just becomes one and of …show more content…
Montesquieu states “government should be set up so that no man need be afraid of another”. From this doctrine American Political Philosophers derived the separation of powers into the Executive, Judicial, and Legislative branches. Montesquieu’s presentation of the branches of government were adopted into American political documents upon their creation. The idea that there wasn’t one governing body, but three was unheard of. Most occupants of the new “America” came from England a country ruled by a King. Therefore making it a Monarchy where a single family is seen as divine and ordained by God to be the ruler over that country. The power is passed down generation to generation and each firstborn son is then placed in power after his father. So, the idea of having a government that does not just depend on one family, but many different persons to run it was not a common philosophy. But, the writers of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights thought that this would be a new and honorable way to run their fledgling country. So thus, the Democratic Republic of the United States was born. Designating the three branches with their own roles in society guaranteed that no one branch would have more power that the others, but it would just have different powers. The three branches are like a triangle. They balance eachother out and support each
There are many different ways in which the Enlightenment affected the Declaration of Independence and the U.S Constitution. One way was the by the idea of a Social Contract; an agreement by which human beings are said to have abandoned the "state of nature" in order to form the society in which they now live. HOBBES, LOCKE, and J.J. ROUSSEAU each developed differing versions of the social contract, but all agreed that certain freedoms had been surrendered for society's protection and that the government has definite responsibilities to its citizens. Locke believed that governments were formed to protect the natural rights of men, and that overthrowing a government that did not protect these rights was not only a right, but also an obligation. His thoughts influenced many revolutionary pamphlets and documents, including the Virginia Constitution of 1776, and the Declaration of Independence. The Bill of Rights was created as a listing of the rights granted to citizens, the Bill of Rights serves to protect the people from a too powerful government. These civil rights granted to U.S. Citizens are included in the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Additionally, Locke’s ideas about checks and balances and the division of church and state were later embodied in the U.S. Constitution as well. The Constitution replaced a more weakly organized system of government as outlined under the Articles of Confederation.
The American ideals in regards to freedom along with other human rights are not unique to the United States. In fact many of these freedoms and other rights found within the American declaration of independence were in fact copied from the Englishmen John Locke who wrote extensively on the subject nearly a century before the declaration even came into existence. John Locke was many things throughout his life mainly a philosopher and was also heavily involved in politics and psychology. This is evident throughout Locke’s writings. One of his most renowned works is his Second Treatise of Civil Government in which he discusses his views in regard to the state of nature, why people form governments and the benefits they gain from doing so, along with analyzing the extent of parliament’s
John Locke, one of the leading philosophers of the European Enlightenment was very important when it came to political thought in the United States. His ideas of the reasons, nature, and limits of the government became especially important in the development of the Constitution. In one of his most famous writings of that time, Two Treatises on Government (1689), Locke established a theory where personal liberty could coexist with political power ; meaning that the people would agree to obey the government and in return, the government would have the responsibility of respecting the people’s natural rights. In other words, he laid out a social contract theory that provided the philosophy and source of a governing author...
Specifically, the idea that man is endowed with certain liberties that were granted by God and/or nature was advocated by the Enlightenment thinkers. Many people took aim at arbitrary governments and the “divine right of kings.” John Locke in return offered principles of constructing a constitutional government, a contract between rulers and the ruled. In Document 7, John Locke in The Two Treatises of Government stated that men consent to enter society in order to preserve their natural rights such as life, liberty, and property. The government should protect people's natural rights and if not, then the people can remove their consent because the government derives its power from the consent of the people. John Locke wrote during the time period of the Enlightenment; therefore, his thoughts were based on the emerging idea of individualism furthermore man's inherent rights and powers. Thomas Jefferson wrote in The Declaration of Independence (Document 9) that are all men are created equal and that they are endowed with certain natural rights. The Declaration of Independence was written because of England's tyrannical rule over the American colonies thus, the citizens felt that their natural rights were being abused by the English government. Individualism was indeed formed in response to the skepticism of the Church as
In the Spirit of the Laws, Montesquieu lays out the idea to separate the government into three powers: the legislative; the executive, in respective to things dependent on the laws of nations; and the executive, regarding things dependent on civil laws. Today these there powers are known as the legislative, executive, and judicial powers. The Constitution states in Article 1, “all legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives,” Article 2, “the executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America. He shall hold his Office during the term of four years, and, together with the Vice-President chosen for the same term, be elected, as follows,” and Article 3, “the judicial power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The judges, both of the supreme and inferior courts, shall hold their offices during good behavior, and shall, at stated times, receive for their services a compensation, which shall not be diminished during their continuance in office.” These three amendments outline the separation of the powers of government and how much power each branch has and the
The Founding Fathers of the United States relied heavily on many of the principles taught by John Locke. Many of the principles of Locke’s Second Treatise of Government may easily be discovered in the Declaration of Independence with some minor differences in wording and order. Many of the ideas of the proper role of government, as found in the Constitution of the United States, may be discovered in the study of Locke. In order to understand the foundation of the United States, it is vital that one studies Locke. A few ideas from Hume may be found but the real influence was from Locke. Rousseau, on the other hand, had none.
“Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness," (Jefferson) is arguably the most famous quote from the Declaration of Independence but the more educated would know that Thomas Jefferson most likely plagiarized that from John Locke, who said, “All mankind... being all equal and independent, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty or possessions.” It is without a doubt that John Locke’s philosophy during the Age of Enlightenment had influenced Thomas Jefferson when he was writing the Declaration of Independence. Although Jefferson wrote the Preamble as his own, one can see that he was paraphrasing Locke. To Jefferson’s credit, his writing of the Preamble of the Declaration of Independence was important because it built the bridge between a philosophical theory and actually applying it to politics of the time.
Rousseau, at the time, greatly affected the way some thought, especially thinkers of the Constitution. The reason for this is due to his writings issued in The Social Contract. In it, he expresses his feelings on man being free. The major quote Rousseau uses in it was “man is born free, but he is everywhere in chains.” Rousseau thought that every man should be able to be free but under laws. This meaning that you can have an opinion and do certain things as long as they were within the guide lines of the law enforcers and or government. This gave a great effect on the government because they had followed some things he expressed in The Social Contract. We as Americans felt it was greatly important to be a democracy and for every person’s vote to count. Back then and sometimes now, the way your future was planned out was based and dependent on your class and what you’re born into. (Rousseau, 1)
American history has been influenced by a diversity of people, as well as thoughts. Yet, documents related to the independence of the country might be considered the most significant ones. The Declaration of Independence written by Thomas Jefferson, as well as Common Sense was written by Thomas Paine, both documents appealing for the same cause, but in different manners. In the same order will be mentioned the Second Treatise of Government Excerpt, by John Locke. Locke 's philosophy is based on the natural rights of individuals, and how these rights should be inquired. He says, that individuals have the right to choose who makes their laws and who governs them. Locke 's document makes specific emphasis on the way how power should be administered, "a man comes by a power over other; yet not absolute or arbitrary power". This quote, in addition to his declarations of people needing to come together in order to protect their properties, are some of the influences which could be identified by Jefferson and Paine 's work. However, the one considered
...believed it kept many in bonds or slavery. While Jean-Jacques Rousseau believed that freedom was attained by entering into a social contract with limits established by good will and community participation. Both theories would put restraints on personal property and capital creating ownership relinquished to the state. He believed that laws to protect citizens could not keep up with the changing economic environment. One could conclude that Marx and Rousseau’s theories were relatively close in the role that it plays between citizens and personal property ownership.
On June 12, 1776, in Williamsburg, Virginia, the Virginia Convention unanimously agreed to adopt George Mason’s declaration of rights, now known as the Virginia Declaration of Rights. Much of the Virginia Declaration was influenced by the writings of John Locke. During the seventeenth century, shortly after King James II was overthrown, John Locke wrote the Second Treatise of Civil Government to explain why King James’s II overthrow was justifiable. Through much of Locke’s writings, his main idea was how man was born with natural rights, specifically property and liberty. This can be seen when he writes “the state of nature has a law of nature to govern it, which obliges every one: and reason, which is that law, teaches all mankind, who will but consult it, that being all equal and independent, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty, or possessions.” This influences George Mason in section one where he wrote “ That all men are by nature equally free and independent and have certain inherent rights, of which, when they enter into a state of society, they cannot, by any compact, deprive or divest their posterity; namely, the enjoyment of life and liberty, with the means of acquiring and possessing property, and pursuing and obtaining happiness and safety.” Locke also speaks about how the legislative gets its power from “the hands where the community placed it.” George Manson shows his influence on this in section two where he writes “That all power is vested in, and consequently derived from, the people; that magistrates are their trustees and servants and at all times amenable to them.” Not only was the Virginia Declaration of Rights an important piece of our history of America, but it leads to and influenced a...
...ion with the general will. This may sound like a contradiction but, to Rousseau, the only way the body politic can function is by pursuing maximum cohesion of peoples while seeking maximum individuation. For Rousseau, like Marx, the solution to servitude is, in essence, the community itself.
Thomas Hobbes and Jean-Jacques Rousseau developed theories on human nature and how men govern themselves. With the passing of time, political views on the philosophy of government gradually changed. Despite their differences, Hobbes and Rousseau, both became two of the most influential political theorists in the world. Their ideas and philosophies spread all over the world influencing the creation of many new governments. These theorists all recognize that people develop a social contract within their society, but have differing views on what exactly the social contract is and how it is established. By way of the differing versions of the social contract Hobbes and Rousseau agreed that certain freedoms had been surrendered for a society’s protection and emphasizing the government’s definite responsibilities to its citizens.
Rousseau clearly promotes totalitarianism in The Social Contract, and hints at it in a few passages from his Second Discourse. He desperately attempts to lay down a form of government that eliminates any chance for the people to be victims. Rousseau specifically shows us the faults in the other types of government and tries to prevent them in his ideas. He wants to create a political situation where people have as much sovereignty as possible.
Although it may seem counteractive to have the citizens develop the same laws that they will have to later follow, Rousseau says that all laws passed will be based on the general will and thus they will be inherently good. Rousseau states that all laws passed by the assembly are “solely the authentic acts of the general will” and because “the general will is always right” , all laws passed are inherently good.