John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, Jean Jacques Rousseau

Throughout history there have been many philosophers who have developed many different ideas and concepts. One important group is the classical liberal/social contract theorists who worked and developed their ideas during the 1600s. John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, Jean Jacques Rousseau, and Immanuel Kant were all critical contributors to the liberal ideas that have been the basis for many governmental actions since this time. These three philosophers agreed on many things, but also had many disagreements leading to the further development of their fundamental ideas. The ideas and concepts fundamental to these prominent liberal thinkers have had an impact on the politics of many countries throughout the world and throughout history, and the United
States of America is no exception to this rule. Thomas Hobbes was the first thinker to develop the idea of the social contract.
In his philosophy Hobbes argues that in a state of nature, a state existing without government, man will be inherently evil. In a state of nature, Hobbes famously argues, the lives of men are “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short”. Therefore, in order to protect their fundamental rights, citizens will enter into a social contract in order to guarantee their security and thus forming the state. Hobbes argues that the only entity that would be capable of maintaining such a fragile peace would be a sovereign with absolute power. Hobbes maintains that in order for the social contract to remain intact and for society to maintain some semblance of peace and order, the sovereign must have absolute power. Hobbes also states that no one has the right, on ideological grounds, to overthrow the sovereign. Although a citizen may violently resist the sovereign in order to protect their life, no one has any right to change the form of government that is currently being executed. The absolutist ideals that Hobbes furthers in his political philosophy come into direct disagreement with many other liberal thinkers of his
time. John Locke was another liberal philosopher who adopted the ideas that Hobbes had developed in regards to a state of nature and a social contract. Locke, however, disagreed with Locke about man’s actions when placed in a state of nature. Locke maintained that when inhabiting a state of nature man would be ultimately unselfish and inherently good. Locke still believed that citizens must enter into a state of nature in order to protect their basic rights of life, liberty, and property. However, Locke fundamentally disagreed with Hobbes opinions on an absolute sovereign. Locke argued that when a sovereign becomes a tyrant this violates the basic liberties of life, liberty, and property and therefore it becomes the duty of the citizens to overthrow him and institute a new sovereign. Locke argued that by entering into the social contract citizens give up their right to exact retribution for crimes by themselves instead giving that right to the state that has overwhelming force. Citizens do this in exchange for the protection of life, liberty, and property. This idea that man has inherent rights to which the state is bound to protect in the social contract is a contradiction of Hobbes original ideas. Locke argues that man is born with natural rights among them are life, liberty, and property; Hobbes, on the other hand, argues that man has no natural rights and therefore, in order to gain some rights, moves from a state of nature and enters into the social contract. This also bring us to a main point of difference between Hobbes and Locke. Locke argues that the role of the state is to protect these fundamental natural rights that all citizens are born with, Hobbes, in contrast, who does not prescribe to the idea of natural rights, argues that whatever role the state wants to take is just. Locke states that it is the just duty of the state to act as an impartial and neutral judge in order to protect the fundamental rights of citizens. Hobbes argues that all of civilization is a creation of the state and thusly also a reflection of the will of the ruler. Although John Locke used the ideas that Hobbes created as a basis for his philosophy it is clear that the fundamental principles of the thinking of these two liberal philosophers differs greatly. Jean Jacques Rousseau was another classical liberal philosopher and also helped to develop the ideas of the social contract and furthered classical political thought.
Rousseau argues that in a state of nature men are “noble savages” who live free and equal lives, but are ultimately corrupted by the evil forces and pressures of society. Rousseau argues that the purpose of government is to bring people into harmony with one another. He maintains that citizens of the state must be united by the government under the “General Will”. Rousseau states that representation is not adequate enough to maintain the general will and that in order for society to be brought into harmony citizens must take an active role in their civic duties creating a system of almost direct democracy in order to enact the general will. Ultimately the general will is a commonly held will amongst the citizens of the state that will lead to furthering common goods for the majority of citizens of the state. According to Rousseau, it is the duty of governments to be responsive to and complicit with the general will. Rousseau is clearly in favor of a direct democracy arguing that although the British people may be the freest people on earth their representative democracy does them more harm than good. Rousseau also argued that people are the components that make up a nation and not individuals and that the wills of individuals must be subordinate to the general or collective will in order for the social
contract to be effective. Rousseau differs from Locke and Hobbes in many ways. First of all, according to Rousseau in a state of nature man is inherently good, but is ultimately corrupted by society. Although Rousseau and Locke agree about the state of man in nature they disagree about the effects of society. Rousseau and Hobbes, however, would not agree about the state of man within nature or within society. Rousseau argues that the government must be a complete reflection of the general will and nothing more, therefore, it must not create original legislation only enacting the legislation that is proposed to it by the people. Therefore, representative government is an illusion and only direct government will move society forward in a positive way. This idea comes into direct contrast with Hobbes’ model of an absolute sovereign and with Locke’s idea of representative government. This is how Rousseau differs with John Locke and Thomas Hobbes in regards to classical liberal political philosophy. Clearly the ideas of these philosophers are echoed throughout American politics. The founders of the United States were living, operating, and forming a new country at a time when these ideas were brand new and entirely revolutionary. First of all, the ideas of the governmental duty to protect right, liberty, and property, and that these are natural rights that all are born with, is fundamental in Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence. Jefferson switches property for the pursuit of happiness, but the fundamental principles remain the same. The Declaration of Independence states that these three rights are unalienable an idea that comes directly from John Locke. Also, Jefferson states, as a reason for the Colonies declaring independence, that when a tyrant infringes upon these rights it is the duty of the people to overthrow that tyrant and replace him with a more just leader. This is a fundamental principle of American politics today and one that John Locke developed. Rousseau’s principles that society is a pact between all of its members, that government consists of members of their society, and that government should operate in order to serve the will of the people are fundamental cornerstones of American political life. Although, some politicians ultimately hope for their own gain, when the American people vote for our representatives we ultimately know that we are voting for Americans and we sincerely hope that they serve the will of the people who voted them into office. Although, Rousseau would disagree with our representative democracy his ideals have a heavy impact on American political life. Although Hobbes’ ideas are not pervasive throughout American politics his fundamental principle, the social contract, is critical to the formation of any government. American politicians and Americans in general hope that by electing are government we are preventing our lives from being “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short”.