Thomas Hobbes and John Locke

Hobbes and Locke

John Locke and Thomas Hobbes were famous political Theorists among

other things in their time. Hobbes who was born 40 years before Locke

had a very different perspective to Locke and both will be examined

more through this essay. Even though many of there theories were

different in the sixteenth century Hobbes and Locke' s theories became

closer as the rise of the state and decline of the feudal system

brought about the question of authority.

John Locke born in 1632 he was influenced political thought immensely.

He lived during the age of political upheaval. Locke had a theory of

natural law and natural right, he believed that a rational purpose to

government did exist defending the government as an institution. Locke

insisted that not only did a good government care for the well being

of it public but the well being of the government to. He believed in

gradual social reform and the change in laws rather than revolution.

And that we would live in a state of harmony. Locke believed that all

men had friendly nature and would do no harm. And that man had to

learn for experiences during life. He believed that the state had to

protect mans three natural rights life, liberty and property. Locke

saw the government as a safeguard to protect the rights of the

individuals as the guarantor of society and the consenting government.

But he also suggested that people had the right to rebel, to remove

governments which failed to fulfil what the society wanted. Locke was

a liberalist and believed that people have the right to reserve and

restrain offenders, but not to judge them.

Thomas Hobbes was born in 1588; he lived thr...

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...e is no power to enforce a

covenant. Therefore all sovereigns are in a state of war with each

other. If a citizen wishes peace he must defend the commonwealth

"otherwise the institution of the commonwealth, which they have not

the purpose to preserve was in vain" and he says they are all in the

State of War. Hobbes also contributed to modern psychology and laid

the foundations of modern sociology by applying mechanistic principles

in an attempt to explain human motivation and social organization.

Hobbes point of view on human nature and how a government should be

run is a more realistic way of looking at things than Locke's theory.

Hobbes and Locke both agreed that a social contrast was necessary to

prevent anarchy and that certain individual s taking advantage of

others natural right. The difference between the two.