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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
This 7 page paper takes a look at John Locke's writings, with a focus on The Second Treatise of Civil Government, in contemplating the contradictions in his theory. The paper concludes that Locke's political theory is valid,
despite inconsistencies, as those are unavoidable anyway. Bibliography lists 4 sources.
Page Count:
7 pages (~225 words per page)
File: RT13_SA009Loc.doc
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
"To understand political power right, and derive it from its original, we must consider, what state all men are naturally in, and that is, a state of perfect freedom to
order their actions, and dispose of their possessions and persons, as they think fit, within the bounds of the law of nature, without asking leave, or depending upon the will
of any other man" (Locke The Second PG). He goes on to note that the power of the state should be reciprocal and that no one should have more than
another (PG). Interestingly, although in this work he appears to condone freedom of choice, it is also true that Locke contends that people do have a duty to God, to
obey their ruler (Honderich 493). At the same time, he says that the rulers power is by no means absolute (493). Thus, in cases where a leader is wrong,
resistance may be justifiable (493). The second treatise, to a degree, seems contradictory, but what Locke was trying to say is that people should have freedom, but not absolute freedom.
In examining this theory it helps to look at contemporary philosophy and examples. Libertarians want the most amount of freedom from government, contending that government has little right to meddle
in their business. On the other side are those who want totalitarian rule, where the people have little say in what goes on. Between those extremes, one might say that
a liberal democrat wants a great deal of government control particularly in terms of money, but freedoms concerning ideation and belief are to be upheld. Conservative republicans want want more
autonomy in terms of business decisions, less taxation and government programs; yet, they want government to be tough on crime. Those are some typical stances, but by no means include
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