The Social Contract Theory of John Locke

John Locke was born in Wrington , Somerset , England on August 29 1704 to John Locke and Agnes Keene , who were both Puritans (Uzgalis 2001 , Wikipedia 2006 , Microsoft Encarta 2006 . His father , after whom he was named , served as captain of cavalry for the Parliamentarian forces in the early part of the English Civil War . His family later moved to Pensford and Locke grew up in a rural Tudor house in Belluton . He attended the Westminster School in London in 1647 under Alexander Popham , a member of Parliament and his father 's former commander

Then he was admitted at the Christ Church College at Oxford University , where he developed greater interest in modern philosophy , such as Rene Descartes , than the school 's classical material . He earned a bachelor 's degree in 1656 , a master 's degree in 1658 and a bachelor of medicine degree in 1674 . He worked with renowned scientists and thinkers , like Robert Boyle , Thomas Willis , Robert Hooke and Richard Lower . In 1666 , he met Anthony Ashley Cooper , the first Earl of Shaftesbury , who was then seeking treatment for a liver infection . Cooper got impressed with Locke and convinced him to move into Lord Ashley 's home in 1667 as his personal physician . Locke then resumed his medical studies under Thomas Sydenham who would later influence Locke 's thinking . Meantime , Locke coordinated with several other physicians on the life-threatening condition of Shaftesbury 's liver condition and persuaded the latter to submit to surgery to remove the cyst . The surgery was successful and Shaftesbury credited Locke with saving his life . In that period , Locke served as Secretary of the Board of Trade and Plantations and as Secretary to the Lords and Proprietors of the Carolinas (Microsoft Encarta , Wikipedia , Uzgalis

Shaftesbury was a founder of the Whig Movement and thus had great influence on Locke 's political thinking (Wikipedia 2006 , Microsoft Encarta 2006 , Uzgalis 2001 . Locke got involved in politics