Preview

Political Theory: Comparing Locke, Rousseau and Plato

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
3768 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Political Theory: Comparing Locke, Rousseau and Plato
Locke: What is the purpose of politics

- we could live in the state of nature, we don’t need contract or soverign

- life, liberty and property

State of nature: men live according to reason and governed by reason

- man exists in the state of nature in perfect freedom to do as they want, a state of perfect freedom

- not necessarily good or bad, bit is calm and peaceful

- men give up some of their freedom to secure the advantages of civilized socity

- men have the right to protect their freedom (killing if necessary)

- bound by the laws of nature

- contrast with hobbes: everyone has the right over everything, there exist no private property

- Liberty to do as he will, but not harm others

Purpose of government:

- to secure the natural rights of property rights and liberty

- we need law enforcers (soverign), we give power to one person and in doing so this creates a government

Private Property:

- one established once you mix your labor with good

- most important because we must create a state because of the scarcity of resource (prisoners dilemma) and the innovation of money

- mandatory to own property while living in commonwealth, can mix labour with other peoples resource (compensated)

Representation:

- ensures the government represents the people

- safeguard against oppression

- disapproval of absolute monarchies; they are arbitary and represent interest of one

- governement must always be for the people

1. government must be desgined to protect the people from the gov

2. natural rights must be secured

Rousseau:

- mans main drive is self preservation, but thinks that hobbes and locke overestimated the likelihood of the state of war

- men are inherintely good

State of Nature:

- gives life to general will, so all can live well

-
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Unit 4 Absolutism And Constitutionalism Unit Essay

    • 573 Words
    • 1 Page

    Unit 4 Absolutism And Constitutionalism Unit Essay

    “The natural liberty of man is to be free from any superior power on earth, and to not be under…

    • 573 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    GOV 2305
    • 454 Words
    • 2 Pages

    GOV 2305

    2. — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government……

    • 454 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    John Locke's Influence On Society And Government
    • 66 Words
    • 1 Page

    John Locke's Influence On Society And Government

    In the midst of the Enlightenment Age, a time when philosophers such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Thomas Hobbes, and John Locke were forming new ideas of society and government, a war had started between Britain and its American colonies. The colonists claimed their government was failing to provide for its citizens, sharing Locke’s views of the natural rights of men that a government was meant to…

    • 66 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Compare And Contrast John Locke And Rousseau
    • 496 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Compare And Contrast John Locke And Rousseau

    After many years of absolute monarchy different philosophers, leaders, and writers idealized new forms of government to create the age of Enlightenment. Important Pre-Enlightenment people such as Queen Elizabeth,Thomas Hobbes, King Louis XIV, and Plato believed that the most successful way to run a country was with a single ruler. The philosophers and the leaders of the Enlightenment era believed that providing citizens with independence and freedom was the best way for a country to thrive and succeed.…

    • 496 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Similarities Between Locke And Rousseau
    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Similarities Between Locke And Rousseau

    After explaining how the state of nature evolved into civil society when people began to rely on each other for resources, Rousseau concluded that the social contact that made civil society possible is more important that the individuals who created it. Although civil society created inequality, it also created freedom, morality, and rationality, which make people human. On the other hand, Locke explained that the state of nature evolved into civil society because people wanted to protect their property and liberties. He concluded that civil society exists to benefit the people; if the present government fails to do so it should be overthrown.…

    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Madison And Rousseau: A Comparative Analysis
    • 312 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Madison And Rousseau: A Comparative Analysis

    Political unions define our lives. They are the basis for the laws that govern our actions and, perhaps, even our thoughts. So long as governments exist, people must work to discover their ideal structure. James Madison, in “Federalist Paper Number 10” and “A Memorial and Remonstrance against Religious Assessments,” and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, in The Social Contract, each try to determine this structure, and they both assume that stability is vital to an ideally functioning society. Nevertheless, when it comes to the government’s power, Madison and Rousseau have little in common. Madison believes that the government is bound by a “great Barrier” which defends the individual's’ rights and that any government breaching this barrier becomes a tyrant. In stark contrast, Rousseau claims that when people join together…

    • 312 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    How Did The French Revolution Influence The Declaration Of The Rights Of Man
    • 515 Words
    • 3 Pages

    How Did The French Revolution Influence The Declaration Of The Rights Of Man

    “Liberty consists in the freedom to do everything which injures no on else; hence the exercise of the natural right of each man has no limits except those which assure to the other members of the society the enjoyment…

    • 515 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Dbq Absolute Government
    • 695 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Dbq Absolute Government

    It is known that a state without government is a state in chaos and confusion. What the best possible form of government should be has been debated by political philosophers over time. To vigorously ensure the well-being of a state, the government of that state should be absolute or one in which all power is vested in a single ruler. A monarch's authority to govern should be absolute because God establishes kings, decisions would be made quicker, and there would be less conflict between differing parties.…

    • 695 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Checkpoint: Literary Canon
    • 279 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Checkpoint: Literary Canon

    1.) What literature do you consider to be part of the United States current literary canon and why?…

    • 279 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Property Law- Control over Access
    • 835 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Property Law- Control over Access

    The right to exclude others or to have control over the access of strangers from the benefits of a property is hence the key in identifying what is (or is not) property, and in defining the ‘propertiness’ of property.[5]…

    • 835 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    John Locke's The Second Treatise Of Government
    • 789 Words
    • 4 Pages

    John Locke's The Second Treatise Of Government

    At first sight, Locke’s The Second Treatise of Government, seemed quite similar to Hobbes’s Leviathan. They both believed that a state of nature is a state that exist without government. They believe that men are created equal in this state, however Hobbes argues that because of self-preservation, man possessed the desire to control over other man. Locke, on the other hand, reasons with a more peaceful and pleasant place.…

    • 789 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    1. Why Do We Have Government?
    • 930 Words
    • 4 Pages

    1. Why Do We Have Government?

    1.Why do we have government? As the colonist declared their independence from Great Britain, many did not want a political system, due to England’s horrid political structure. This resulted in a conflict between those who wanted to live free from rule, and those who saw the need for a system. The colonists’, who did not want to be ruled, compromised because they wanted their natural rights and liberties to be protected.…

    • 930 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    “Life in a State of Nature Would Be Awful.” Assess and Evaluate This View.
    • 1094 Words
    • 5 Pages

    “Life in a State of Nature Would Be Awful.” Assess and Evaluate This View.

    A state of nature; a life where no governable state exists and no one possesses political power. ‘Why do we not live in a state of nature?’ some may ask. Why must we be under the government’s power? The first step in understanding why we have something, like the government, is to consider what life would be like without it. There has been many different concepts over time as to what a ‘state of nature’ really is and if life really would be awful without it. Initially, Hobbes believed that in a state of nature, all men would turn ‘nasty and brutish’ and life would turn into a never-ending cycle of crime and war as there would be no one there to stop us. On the contrary, Locke believed that man would be content in a state of nature, that life would be the opposite of awful and we would act morally towards each other due to the social contract. Thirdly, Rousseau thought that if we ever found ourselves in a state of nature, men would turn to savages, but would be happy with it.…

    • 1094 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Viktor Frankl: Logotherapy and Meaning of Life
    • 608 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Viktor Frankl: Logotherapy and Meaning of Life

    “Freedom is only part of the story and half of the truth. Freedom is but the negative aspect of the whole phenomenon whose positive aspect is responsibleness.”…

    • 608 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Comparing Locke And Rousseau's State Of Nature
    • 539 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Comparing Locke And Rousseau's State Of Nature

    When comparing Rousseau to Hobbes and Locke, the differences in their ideologies are prominent, however, they are still similar in some ways. In the State of Nature according to Rousseau, “man’s natural sentiment was that of his existence, his first care that of his preservation” (Discourse, Part II). This man is known as the “nascent man” and is often contrasted with the “savage man”, who exists in civilized society. In this State of Nature, man’s primary concern is to look after himself, similar to Hobbes’ and Locke’s, However, this is essentially the extent of the similarities between the three. Hobbes and Locke believe that man is naturally a societal animal who thrives with the presence of politics, whereas Rousseau believes exactly the opposite: that man is naturally a solitary animal, and that society corrupts us.…

    • 539 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics