Preview

John Locke's Civil Disobedience, By John Locke

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
155 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
John Locke's Civil Disobedience, By John Locke
In the beginning of the passage Locke expresses his view on the government. He feels as though civilization has given up their liberty for luxuries. “Individuals…surrendering absolute liberty in exchange for the protection...the human mind begins as a blank slate and acquires knowledge through experience.” He also thought “experience is either sensation or reflection…both begin at birth and together they entirely determine human understanding.” I would say that his ideas would be representative to another person. any people gain information by trying it by themselves. A child won’t know not to touch the oven until they get burned. I think all around people gain knowledge by experience. Even if they do not experience, they may experience

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    Chapters 6 And 7 Module 2

    • 1747 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Locke believed that all of our ideas come from experience. He notes that our minds begin as a blank…

    • 1747 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    "Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth. I sat at a table where were rich food and wine in abundance, an obsequious attendance, but sincerity and truth were not; and I went away from the inhospitable board. The hospitality was as cold as the ices." - Henry David Thoreau, Walden, or Life In The Woods…

    • 956 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Thomas Jefferson, the third president and author of the declaration of independence, once exclaimed, “If a law is unjust a man is not only right to disobey it, he is obligated to do so.” Jefferson declares that at any cost if one finds a law wrong than it is his duty to stand against it for the common good. He implies that people should never stand idly by or blindly follow a law that is immoral only because it is the easiest way. Knowing when a protest against government is needed was also what the writers Martin Luther King, Henry David Thoreau, and Arthur Miller wanted to instruct to their readers. King was a significant activist and leader of the civil rights movement who was the cause of many amendments and progress for the rights of African Americans. His A Letter From…

    • 1749 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Locke believed that knowledge was only gained through worldliness. He told people that experiences caused them to learn. One famous this he argued is that, “at birth the mind is a tabula rasa”3. Tabula rasa translates to “clean slate”. Essentially, everyone is born without knowledge and over time they become wiser and smarter. This was revolutionary because previously no one had every stopped to think about how knowledge was gained other than schooling. Locke was the first to think that people were born without any knowledge. He emphasized the five senses as well. Humans fill their clean slate with ideas and experience in the world through their five senses. There are many varying definitions of knowledge, but John Locke is the most accurate. Locke defines knowledge as “the connection and agreement, or disagreement and repugnancy, of the ideas humans form”4. Since our knowledge is derived from our experiences, it means our knowledge is limited. Not everyone can know everything since not one single person can experience everything this earth has to offer in one lifetime. This also means that everyone’s knowledge varies and no two people have the same exact knowledge since everyone’s experiences are different. Locke also notes that there is a great deal of unknown on this world and there always will be. This observation still is true today because there is a great deal of uncertainty in today’s society. He is also still influential because he taught us to question those uncertain areas. As a continuation, he agrees that there are certain things that we are certain of. One example that Locke uses is the certainty of our own existence and the existence of God even tough we may not fully comprehend who or what he was5. Another very complex theory that he had relating to the idea of knowledge was our ideas are related to reality. He said that, “our ideas…

    • 1428 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    King was influenced by the works of Transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau. He studied his work while at Morehouse, and was impressed with his concept of civil disobedience (McElrath & Andrews, 2007). King was intrigued by the possibilities of Thoreau’s method. Thoreau stated that it was better to “break the law than to participate in the injustice toward another person” (McElrath & Andrews, 2007).…

    • 517 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The similarities and the differences between these three very different texts, Civil Disobedience, J.K. Rowling’s 2008 Harvard commencement speech, and Mrs. Hauser’s article are both astonishing and profound; All while maintaining this sense of common sense and truth.…

    • 66 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Locke believes that before we form civil society by consenting to establish government, we live in a State of Nature. He describes this pre-political state as,...a state of perfect freedom to order their actions, and dispose of their possessions and persons, as they think fit, within the bounds of the law of nature, without asking leave, or depending on the will of any other man. (Locke, 1980, p.81)The State of Nature is ruled essentially by human nature. Liberty, equality, self preservation, reason, and property are the most prominent principles that Locke feels are innate to humans. Locke explains how nature intended for all men to be equal,...creatures of the same species and rank, promiscuously born to all the same advantages of nature, and the use of the same facilities should be equal amongst another... (Locke, 1980, p.8)Locke comes to the conclusion that humans are self preserving in the State of…

    • 4014 Words
    • 17 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    John Locke was born on August 29th, 1632 in England and lived to became one of the most influential people in England and, perhaps, one of the most influential people of the 17th century. Before his death on October 28th, 1704 he would earn the title as the Father of liberal philosophy. His ideas would also be used as a keystone for the revolution of the North American colonies from England. Locke fled to Holland in 1683. He returned to England in about 1688 when William and Mary were to retake the reign of England in what historians call the "Bloodless Revolution". Locke returned to Oates in Essex where he retired. He lived there until his death in 1704.…

    • 322 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Thoreau uses tone and imagery to make his theme stronger in Civil Disobedience. He uses the rhetorical devices in a convincing matter.…

    • 167 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    History is often said to repeat itself. When the American revolution took place in the later half of the eighteenth century, little did anyone know that almost two-hundred years later Vietnam would be in a very similar situation. The revolution in the U.S and Vietnam had three similar qualities, in both rebels used strong language to exaggerate their points, the “parent” countries enforced uncalled for taxes, and both claim to have been abandoned as allies.…

    • 620 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In “the Declaration of Independence” (1776), Thomas Jefferson, argues that the colonies need to get their independence from Great Britain because instead of respecting them they have been abusing and taking advantage of the colonies. Thomas Jefferson reinforces his point of view by listing all the ways that King George has been abusing his powers, and he points out how all men deserve “ life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” (95). Jefferson knows that his people aren’t happy with the way that they are being treated, so in order to stand up for his people and support them he declared independence from Britain. In a serious and furious tone he made it clear to King George and the british people that they didn’t want to keep being unhappy…

    • 138 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    2. Thoreau considers civil disobedience as a duty rather than a right because he believes that the individual should “make known what kind of government would command his respect,” which “will be one step toward obtaining it” (941). When a civil law, or a law established by the government contradicts with the divine law, it becomes a duty for an individual to disobey the civil law. In his essay, Thoreau describes majority of the men as “machines,” serving the state “not as merely as men mainly” (941). Thoreau believes that in order to preserve the moral sense of the individual, civil disobedience is necessary and it is the duty of the people to go against the civil law.…

    • 723 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Civil Government and Higher Law. In Civil Disobedience, Thoreau's basic premise is that a higher law than civil law demands the obedience of the individual. Human law and government are subordinate. In cases where the two are at odds with one another, the individual must follow his conscience and, if necessary, disregard human law.…

    • 1727 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Declaration is rooted in natural law. Natural rights were part of natural law that in turn was part of God’s law. John Locke summarized God given rights as, “life liberty and property. ”X In the Declaration, Thomas Jefferson would later extend Locke’s paraphrasing to “Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”…

    • 873 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The resolution I have been researching for the past month is “Resolved: Civil Disobedience in a Democracy is morally justified.” Although there is no single, agreed upon definition, many definitions are similar. Civil disobedience is usually defined along the lines of refusing to obey certain rules and laws as a form of non-violent protest of an unjust law, or any law that one opposes, and is often done to bring attention to said law. Through my research, I have found a number of arguments for civil disobedience within a democracy, as well as arguments against it.…

    • 426 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays