| − | '''John Locke''' (1632-1704) was a leading political [[philosopher]] during the [[Enlightenment]], and a major contributor to [[liberal]] philosophy. His theories of the rights of man, including property, were adopted by the [[American]] founding fathers (the phrase "Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" is almost directly taken from Locke [his original words were "life, liberty, and estate"] ). Locke described society as a contract between individuals called the "social contract", and held that the formation of collectives by individuals was the only way to ensure economic prosperity (see his ''Second Treatise on Government''). | + | '''John Locke''' (1632-1704) was a leading political [[philosopher]] during the [[Enlightenment]], and a major contributor to [[liberal]] philosophy. His theories of the [[unalienable rights|rights]] of man, including [[property]], were adopted by the [[American]] [[founding fathers]] (the phrase "Life, [[liberty]], and the pursuit of happiness" is almost directly taken from Locke [his original words were "life, liberty, and estate"] ). Locke described society as a contract between individuals called the "[[social contract]]", and held that the formation of collectives by individuals was the only way to ensure economic prosperity (see his ''Second Treatise on Government''). |
| − | Locke's view helped lay the foundation for the constitutional government that we use in the United States. Locke had built on the prior work of fellow Englishmen [[Francis Bacon]] and [[Thomas Hobbes]]. | + | Locke's view helped lay the foundation for the [[constitutional republic]]an form of [[government]] that we use in the [[United States]]. Locke had built on the prior work of fellow Englishmen [[Francis Bacon]] and [[Thomas Hobbes]]. |
| | Locke is also famous for his theory of the tabula rasa, or "blank slate", which he is said to have first conceived while spending many hours of fruitless effort on a math problem as a boy. | | Locke is also famous for his theory of the tabula rasa, or "blank slate", which he is said to have first conceived while spending many hours of fruitless effort on a math problem as a boy. |