John Locke 's Principles About Liberty And The Loyalists Essay

English philosopher and political theorist, John Locke experienced the English Civil Wars first-hand which would later prompt him to question the purpose and structure of government. The wars were the result of conflict between a king who claimed absolute authority by divine right and a Parliament that believed itself to have authority independent of the crown. The English Civil Wars provided the context in which Locke would develop the arguments for his most famous work, the Second Treatise of Government. In the work, Locke begins by claiming that without the existence of government humans exist in a state of nature. Since there is no governing body in the state of nature individuals are free to

Many colonists were angered because of high taxes England chose to enforce on them. These taxes were a result of the British participation and victory in the French and Indian war. However, what made the colonists even more angry was the fact that they were being taxed without representation in England’s Parliament. The colonists thought that, in order to be taxed by the British, they should have representation in it. They saw it as unfair to be taxed by a government they had no say in. As Patrick Henry said in his speech made to the Virginia House of Burgesses, “We can under law be taxed only by our own representatives...The Stamp Act is against the law. We must not obey it…” (Doc. 1). Since many colonists thought this taxation broke the law, some of them chose to protest by going to the House of Burgesses, boycotting imports, or simply not paying it in response. This response is justified; if

American colonists should support the Declaration of Independence and the Patriots in the Revolutionary War. Great Britain was taxing the American colonists because of Britain’s great debt from the French and Indian War. Britain made the quartering act, the stamp act, townshend act, and the tea act. This is taxation without representation and it was unjust. The Patriots were angry and rightfully so. The King was making the colonists pay taxes on imported goods to decrease his country’s debt, the Patriots were outraged and wanted freedom.

John Locke was perhaps one of the most influential political philosophers of the modern period. In the Second Treatise of Government, John Locke discusses the move from a state of nature and perfect freedom to a then governed society in which authority is given to a legislative and executive power. His major ideas included liberalism and capitalism, state of nature, state of war and the desire to protect one’s property.

Constitution. John Locke’s belief of “life, liberty, and property” was the most influence on the American. Beside the Magna Carta, Petition of Rights, and English Bill of Rights, Locke also has a great influence of limit government. Locke’s Social Contract theory was to protect the basic rights of the people, it for the right of citizens to revolt against their king. Social contract is a convention between men that aims to discard the state of nature. According to Locke, the State of Nature is a state of perfect and complete liberty to behavior one's life as one best perceives fit, and free from the interfering of others. Also from Locke’s view of State of Nature, he believes it was given by

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.

John Locke was an English writer, and his writings were based on the events that took place during the Glorious Revolution in England in 1689, when the people of England overthrew King James II. John Locke was interestingly enough, brought up in a loyalist and Evangelical family. He was born to a very wealthy family, and received much prestige in Oxford for his connections to the higher ups. Locke presented his ideas of rebellion during the English civil war which took place in the mid-1600s, in favor of the revolts against the King’s rule in England at the time. John Locke graduated with a degree in medicine from Oxford University.

On July 4th, 1776 our founding father's got together to create, “The Declaration of Independence” One of the quotes that benefit all U.S. citizens is that all people living in the United States are entitled to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. Life, meaning every person has the right to live, to literally be alive. Liberty, meaning every person has the right to be whatever they choose, and to live their life however they want. The Pursuit of Happiness, meaning every person has the right to pursue happiness and do whatever makes them happy. These are inalienable rights that can never be taken away. John Locke is the person that created the phrase “The Pursuit of Happiness”, but Thomas Jefferson is the person that thought it was a good idea to put that in The Declaration of Independence. What does this phrase mean for us today? What did it mean for people in the past? What was

Though many laws were passed taxing the colonists, America had no say in the British Parliament. Patrick Henry’s speech embodies this argument when he says “We have no representatives in the British Parliament…… The Stamp Act is against the law. We must not obey it” (Doc. 1). This act of defiance caught the colonists’ attention and made them feel that perhaps they could change the laws after all. Another act of defiance against the British was the Boston Tea Party. The Boston Tea Party was a riot against the British that involved colonists dumping tons of tea from British ships into the sea. Britain then passed a law that said that the Boston Harbor would be closed until the colonists paid for the tea. This angered the colonists even more, and eventually led to the Revolution. As you can see, many rebellious deeds inspired the colonists and helped them confront the British.

The Second Treatise of Government provides Locke's theorizes the individual rights and involvement with the government; he categorizes them in two areas -- natural rights theory and social contract. 1.Natural state; rights which human beings are to have before government comes into being. 2.Social contact; when conditions in natural state are unsatisfactory, and there's need to develop society into functioning of central government.

When looking at the Declaration of Independence and the justifications which Jefferson used in order to encourage the dissolve of the ties between the United Colonies and Great Britain, it becomes apparent how much of the theories of John Locke that Jefferson used as the basis for his argument. Focusing particularly on the second paragraph of the Declaration, the arguments for the equality of each man and the formation and destruction of governments come almost directly from Locke's Second Treatise of Government. The other arguments in the Declaration of Independence deal primarily with each citizen's rights and the natural freedoms of all men, two areas that Locke also spent

The 1773 Tea Act did cause the American Revolution in that it sparked huge opposition amongst the colonists. It was the third time that the British had tried to tax the Americans — both the 1765 Stamp Act and the 1767 Townshend Duties had been repealed due to such opposition. The Tea Act was the final straw for many colonists — the Sons of Liberty organised a huge protest in which they boarded the ships carrying the East India Company’s tea, and threw £10,000 worth of tea into the sea in defiance. This was known as the Boston Tea Party and demonstrated to the British that the Americans were not willing to accept British taxation. The slogan ‘no taxation without representation’ was frequently used, showing how the Americans felt the British, in trying to tax them, were attempting to impose a tyrannical rule. The Boston Tea Party provoked outrage in Britain, with many of the politically conscious calling for the Americans to be punished. This then led to the Coercive Acts in 1774, which aimed at isolating Boston — although it only resulted in increasing the tension between the

John Locke was born on August 29, 1632, into a middle class family during late Renaissance England. Locke started his studies at Christ Church in Oxford. He then went into medical studies and received a medical license, which he practiced under Anthony Cooper. They became friends, and when Cooper became Earl of Shaftesbury, Locke was able to hold minor government jobs and became involved in politics. Shaftesbury steered Locke towards the views of a government whose law was fair to all, and all were under the law.

Although executions made by one single ruler may be speedy and decisive, decisions would be better off made when a monarch’s authority is limited by the people, so that there could be more minds to work together and make the most efficient and effective decisions for the long run. An example of a limited monarchy today is the British Monarchy. The British Monarchy is a great example of how the power should be limited by the people, as it would be much more stable and effective. The Monarch governs according to the constitution-that is, according to rules, rather than according to his or her own free will. The United Kingdom does not have a written constitution which sets out the rights and duties of the “Sovereign”, they are established by

In John Locke’s Treatises 4 and 6, Locke goes over what state men are born into and what is the State of Liberty. In Treatise 4, Locke says that you have the choice of what you want to do; you can sell or give away your possessions as society thinks is acceptable. In addition, Locke states that you are also allowed to live in a society without being asked to leave, or forced to live as a slave of another man. In Treatise 6, Locke states that a man’s State of Liberty shall be uncontrolled and is run by society’s unchanging morals. The State of Liberty also teaches that all men are equal and independent; no one can take away their life, health, liberty, or possessions.