liberty, and property In Two Zheatises of Government (1689), Locke argued that the function of government is to protect these rights and that these right belong naturally to individuals. This was a contrast to earlier philosophers who believ that government should enforce religious teachings or should maintain tradin that kept a community close together.
Locke's emphasis on the natural rights of individuals led to another disagreement with Hobbes. While Hobbes feared dissent, Locke believed in the right of people to disagree with and influence a government. Further, if the government continued to violate the natural rights of individuals, citizens had a duty to overthrow the government.
Locke's ideas about government and natural rights became very influential, first in Europe and the Americas. They helped inspire the colonists who rebelled against Great Britain to found the United States in 1776, as well as other colonial rebellions in Latin America. Locke's ideas expressed in Two Treatises of Government now shape how people around the world think about government.
French Political Philosophy
Hobbes and Locke, the most influential European political philosophers in the 17th century, were both English. In the 18th century, the most influential European thinkers were French.
Montesquieu The Baron de Montesquieu (1689-1755) published Reflections on the Causes of the Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire (1734). Ins Montesquieu advanced the unusual idea that the strengths of the Roman Empir such as its wealth, power, and territorial expansion, resulted in its weaknesses. Rome's real strength was its citizens' civic virtue, which weakened as the empir expanded and became more affluent and complacent.
But it was The Spirit of the Laws (1750) that made Montesquieu among the best-known philosophers in Europe. Montesquieu admired the English method of dividing political power among the monarch, the Parliament, and the English courts. He suggested that all governments should split powers among three separate, equally powerful branches
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executive
•legislative judicial
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Like Locke, Montesquieu strongly influenced the United States. The U.S. Constitution shows his ideas about the separation of powers among distinct branches of government as well as creating checks and balances among these branches.
Voltaire Writing under the pen name Voltaire, François-Marie Arouet (1694 1778) was the most famous man in Europe of his time. He wrote books and essays about government, religion, and philosophy, as well as popular plays. In some ways he built upon the ideas of Hobbes and Locke:
Like Hobbes, he was pessimistic about human nature. He felt that few peo- ple were capable of governing themselves.
Like Locke, he believed that people have natural rights. No government could take these away. In particular, he supported free speech. He reportedly claimed, "I disagree with what you said but I will defend to the death your right to say it."
Voltaire advocated for a government led by a wise monarch. He particularly admired England's system. In his Letters Concerning the English Nation (1734), The praised England for its freedom in religion and commerce.
HISTORY and GEOGRADIO Composers in the 18th century such as franz joseph hayden and wolfgang mozart wrote music and emphasized balance and order. How was the music similar to philosophy of Motesquieu? written like a 8th grader (short sentence)