locke and hobbes essay

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Breanna Rae
Mr. Corrow
World History
March 19, 2014
Locke or Hobbes: How do you really feel? Locke believed the ideal form of government was a democracy because it allowed the citizens of the country to have their own rights, it allowed them to make governmental decisions for their own good, and he believed that the purpose of the government is to protect individual rights and liberties. Hobbes believed that a monarch should have absolute power over his or her citizens, which I do not agree with. Locke believed that “all people are born with inalienable rights . . . life, liberty, and the right to own property” (notes). In a democracy, citizens are given the opportunity to protect those rights. They are allowed to vote for what they feel is right for them and the rest of their country, thus insuring the protections of their rights and opinions. Hobbes, however, believed that “people are born with rights that they relinquish to the monarch in return for protection . . . known as social contract” (notes). While this may seem like a good idea, if the monarch doesn’t take these rights into consideration, the people can’t do anything about it and have to deal with having their rights taken away. He also believed that people could be trusted enough to make the right decisions governmentally for themselves and their country if they were provided with the right information. This shows the citizens that their government is dependent on their opinions to make decisions regarding their own welfare. Hobbes believes that citizens could not be trusted, and that they would need to be completely obedient to their monarch in order for society to function. For the people of that country, it would not be a good deal. They would have to do whatever they were told and only that,

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