Who was more influential Hobbes or Locke?

Who was more influential Hobbes or Locke?

Of the two, Locke has been the most influential in shaping modern politics, our view of human nature, the nature of individual rights and the shape of popular constitutions that exist today; on the other hand, Hobbes has influenced to some degree what can be done to change a government by the people.

Who influenced the founding fathers the most?

The single most important influence that shaped the founding of the United States comes from John Locke, a 17th century Englishman who redefined the nature of government.

How did John Locke influence the founders?

His political theory of government by the consent of the governed as a means to protect the three natural rights of “life, liberty and estate” deeply influenced the United States’ founding documents. His essays on religious tolerance provided an early model for the separation of church and state.

Which American founding father did John Locke influence the most?

His most famous writings, A Letter Concerning Toleration and Second Treatise of Government, both heavily influenced the author of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson. Many believe much of the most memorable language of the Declaration of Independence is derived from Locke’s works.

How was Thomas Hobbes influential?

Thomas Hobbes, an English philosopher and scientist, was one of the key figures in the political debates of the Enlightenment period. He introduced a social contract theory based on the relation between the absolute sovereign and the civil society.

How did Thomas Hobbes and John Locke influence the founding fathers?

Locke improved on the ideas of Thomas Hobbes, and the Founding Fathers improved on the ideas of John Locke – applying them in the founding of our nation. The Founding Fathers were influenced by both, and we owe much of the success of our government to these two men.

What are the similarities and differences between Locke and Hobbes?

Locke is more concerned with the preservation of natural born rights and the protection of accumulated wealth in the form of property. In contrast, Hobbes was more focused on the dangers of nature and the need to form a sovereign state to aid in the interest of man’s self-preservation.

How did Hobbes influence the framers of the Constitution?

Hobbes’ premise of how political leadership must subsume the rights of the individuals for fear of chaos and a brutal state of nature was present in the framers’ mind, as well. The framers could not very well embrace Hobbes’ Leviathan autocratic figure as this would go against the constitutional democratic order they desired.

What type of government did Thomas Hobbes believe in?

Hobbes gave the most powerful argument ever written for the necessity of some form of government. Nothing written since then, even by Locke and the Founding Fathers, has ever equaled it. But the government that Hobbes advocated was one of absolute power; for he believed that that was the only way to prevent anarchy.