John Locke And Politics Essay, Research Paper

John Locke and his ideas about philosophy was a major influence on the American

political system, not to mention many other political systems, too. His ideas

were very universal, especially those regarding rights and freedom, two topics

for which the United States of America is best known. Locke claimed that

?there is a law of nature governing human beings and that it is knowable by

human reason?(Lavine, 136). This law of nature is the basis of American

politics, one by which we all live by today. This law included the idea that all

human beings are equal, ?possessing the same natural rights of life, liberty,

and property…? and that all human beings have the ?same obligation not to

infringe on the rights of other?(136). Most of laws and justifications

Americans live by today are based on exactly these arguments. John Locke?s

statements about this law of nature for all human beings justified many

revolutions, including the American revolution of 1776. Because this revolution

had such a great impact on American political system, it is clear just how

significant Locke?s beliefs were, and still are. His ideas were even clearly

put in the American Declaration of Independence. In Jefferson?s words, the

Declaration of Independence states: ?We hold these truths to be self-evident,

that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with

certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit

of happiness…? Today, the American people may not recognize it at all, but

they do all live by the laws revealed by John Locke.