John Locke

1 Pages 275 Words

John Locke, the English philosopher of the 1600’s main thesis was that men could rule themselves in an orderly and judicial way if given the opportunities. This philosophy portrays men who are created in God’s image as rational and fair, who will do justice according to a prescribed set of rules. This theory put the power of governing in the hands of those to be governed. Thomas Hobbe’s philosophy was starkly different for the main reason that he believed people were subjects and needed to be shown the difference between right and wrong and needed to be ruled instead of governed by their own elected officials. This theory discounts the innate goodness that Locke described to men, which was derived from God. Locke believed that people could be trusted to treat each other fairly while on the other hand; Hobbes believed people would destroy each other if given the correct circumstances. The philosophy in which I think would work better is that of John Locke. The reason is two fold. Firstly, I believe people have the ability to be rational and nonjudgmental when it comes to matters of judicial importance. One example is trial by a jury of your peers. This is a fundamental tenant of civilized society. The second reason is John Locke’s philosophy is better in the respect that people have faith in a government that is of their choosing as opposed to a government that is imposed on them. The people would be more willing to sacrifice for a government they choose than on that has been forced onto them....