Essay on John Locke and the Enlightenment - 579 Words

This paper is about John Locke who was a philosopher in the 17-century. He was an Englishmen and his ideas formed the basic concept for the government and laws, which later allowed colonist to justify revolution. I agree with what Locke is saying because everybody should be able to have their own freedom and still respect the freedom of other people. John said, â€Å"Individuals have rights, and their duties are defined in terms of protecting their own rights and respecting those of others†. This paper will present to you information about his enlightenment, personal information, and how we as people feel about his decisions. The Enlightenment is a time in history when there was a want in greater knowledge or discovery. John had a†¦show more content†¦On August 29 1632 John Locke was born in a town named Wrington and lived in a small Somerset village. His mother died when John was at a very young age. His father was a country lawyer and died a couple years after h is mother. He went to Westminster in1646 and then Oxford in 1652. In 1666 John started practicing medicine on Lord Ashley. Ashley and Locke became known to become good friends. In 1668 Locke was elected to be in the Royal Society. The Royal Society was for improving natural knowledge. John did a lot of amazing things in his life time and he accomplished a lot and the one thing that influenced John the most was most likely to be that his parents died at a very young age and that usually has a great effect on children that can later lead into adult hood. John went into government when he became friends with the first earl, a high bishop noble, of Shaftesbury, where he defined natural rights as life, liberty, and property. When he defined the natural he affected Americas Founding Fathers. He wrote two major books to the government called First and Second Treatise. These books were written to defend the Glorious Revolution. In the second treatise he explained to them that men and wom en were free to pursue and defend their own interest. This led to a brutal war. Locke note that the only way out was to make a social compact. What it means is that people will have freedom to themselves with having a government and laws.Show MoreRelatedJohn Locke Enlightenment1191 Words   |  5 Pages The Enlightenment was a time of discovery and innovation, for political and personal philosophy. The main purpose of the enlightenment was to understand the world through different approaches this was a time where knowledge was learned and gained throughout this time especially through a philosopher called John Locke who had ideas on freedom of religion and the rights of citizens and also wrote two books in order to show his points those books are called â€Å"Two Treatises of Civil Government† and â€Å"AnRead MoreThe Enlightenment Theory Of John Locke1627 Words   |  7 PagesThe Enlightenment theory philosophies of John Locke offered a future that could drastically chang e government, economic and social ideals. Thomas Jefferson borrowed liberally from the enlightenment theory from John Locke, specifically focusing on Locks theories of the equality of men, natural rights, and that people should have a say on how the government treated people. Jefferson created a draft document created a bold experiment, America. 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John LockeRead MoreClassical Liberalism And The Enlightenment1244 Words   |  5 PagesPaper #1: Classical Liberalism Classical liberalism is the transition from focusing on government to focusing on the rights of individuals. This transition came about during the time of the Enlightenment in the eighteenth century. The Enlightenment period was when man started to have more faith in his own reasoning. People began to look for evidence on their beliefs themselves and to find proof on these beliefs, so that they could come up with their own opinions on things. One way that they didRead MoreThomas Hobbes And The Enlightenment878 Words   |  4 Pagespeople who will help him govern. This is hard to imagine, but Enlightenment thinkers expressed their opinions on different questions related to this. The Enlightenment was an era from 1600 to 1800. It was a break from strictness of the Catholic Church and a period of intelligence and business growth in Europe. It grew out of the Renaissance, especially humanists. During this era, there were philosophers who were known as Enlightenment thinkers. They though t about two questions. First, are peopleRead MoreInfluence Of Enlightenment On The American Revolution898 Words   |  4 Pages The ideas of the Enlightenment influenced the American Revolution and the formation of the American Government in several different ways. The Enlightenment period initiated several new ideas about freedoms and rights. These ideas were discussed in meetings called salons in France, where they discussed new ideas. There were many influential philosophers from the enlightenment periods, Thomas Hobbes, Montesquieu, Adam Smith, Voltaire, John Locke, and Rousseau. Thomas Hobbes believed that all peopleRead MoreJohn Locke : The Most Influential Philosophical And Political Thinker917 Words   |  4 PagesThe Key to Locke John Locke â€Å"proved to be the most influential philosophical and political thinker of the seventeenth century† (Kagen 213). He lived in a period of great political change; Locke’s upbringing came to influence his philosophies, and these ideas had much significance in regards to the Enlightenment. Locke was born on August 29, 1632 in Wrington, Somerset (John Locke 9: 478). Early on came the outbreak of the English Civil War. Anglican and possessing Puritan sympathies, Locke’s father