John Locke's America

John Locke is a seventeenth century English philosopher (1) whose ideas have had far reaching influence on many parts of western culture. It is a widely entertained notion that John Locke’s ideas and writings had heavy impact on the writing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 (2), and it can easily be understood that this may be one of the most important distinguishing factors setting American culture and idealism apart from that of powerful European empires and nations of the time. Locke’s works began their shaping of America with The Virginia Declaration of Rights, the ideas of which were then translated into the Declaration of Independence, and eventually into the Bill of Rights. (3) This inceptive influence has carried through American history and come to shape the modern American way. Indeed, even the ever sought after “American Dream” suggests that it dates back to Locke’s ideas, with concepts like equality, democracy, and material prosperity. America has achieved idealistic distinction from other nations, and remains to be held as a forward thinking, progressive nation because of the influence of John Locke, and the reflections of his ideas in the original American charters of freedom.
On June 12, 1776, the Virginia Constitutional Convention adopted the Virginia Declaration of Rights (4)(henceforth referred to as the VDR). The document was written by George Mason (5) to express the rights of Virginian citizens, and is plainly tailored after the writings of Locke. The first section states that “All men are by nature equally free and independent and have certain inherent rights […] namely, the enjoyment of life and liberty, with the means of acquiring and possessing property, and pursuing and obtaining happiness and safety.” (6) This statement directly parallels ones that appear across Locke’s work, reflecting his theories on the state of nature and innate human rights and freedoms. In his Second Treatise of Government, Locke sums this theory up in an

Cited: Jefferson, Thomas. "Declaration of Independence" The Charters of Freedom. The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, n.d. Web. 20 May 2012. . Transcript of the original document as recorded by the United States government Locke, John, and Crawford Macpherson. Second Treatise of Government. 1690. Reprint. Indianapolis, Indiana: Hackett, 1980. Print. The second part of Locke 's "Essay Concerning the True Original Extent and End of Civil Government", edited and with an introduction by C.B. Macpherson Madison, James. "Bill of Rights" The Charters of Freedom. The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, n.d. Web. 17 May 2012. . Transcript of the original text as recorded by the United States Government Mason, George. "The Virginia Declaration of Rights." The Charters of Freedom. The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, n.d. Web. 20 May 2012. . Transcript of the original text as recorded by the United States Government Uzgalis, William. "John Locke." Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Version Winter 2010 Edition. Stanford University, n.d. Web. 14 May 2012. . Historical information on Locke and his theories, as well as analysis of his major works