ing such, he isbreaking the laws of nature. Locke believed that man, inthe state of nature, as having the right to interpret andenforce the laws as he sees fit, this vigilante system isa source of chaos. To avoid this chaos, Locke saw it necessary toimplement a social contract, to govern men by a commonruler, or assembly. Another main purpose of this contractis to protect man’s property. According to Locke, asocial contract has no meaning without the consent of thepeople it is governing over. Locke stated that peopleretain sovereignty and grant it only temporarily to stateofficials, they nonetheless always hold part of thesovereignty and have the right to recall the rest of it.This new community, formed by the social contract, Lockebelieved should practice mutual consent, with a majorityrule system. Locke saw all men equal in the state ofnature, hence all have equal opinions. This gives eachman a protected right to exercise his liberties when, inthe state of nature each man’s liberties are constantlyexposed to the aggression of others. According to Locke,it was the government’s job to protect the peoplealthough, if the people are not protected due to anunjust government, then rebellion is justified. Lockebelieved the state had a responsibility to the people,not rights against the people. Thomas Hobbes and John Locke had great insight intothe ideas of two of the most empowering and successfulgovernments of all time. Although their ideas contrast,each provides a strong base for the purposed governments. Each man realized the importance of moving beyond thestate nature and chaos within it. Partially because ofthe ideas of these men, both present and past governmentsof the United States and Great Britain have been strong. The history of this world could greatly differ if thesegovernments had never formed....
