restrain the partiality and violence of men." (Locke 9) Locke's definite optimism concerning the nature of man is clearly transferred to his opinion regarding man's freedom in political society. John Stuart Mill does not have the same optimistic view of the nature of man which Locke holds. However he clearly has more faith in humans than the portrait Thomas Hobbes presents of man in Leviathan. A case can be made for Mill's negative view of humans because of his utilitarian themes throughout On Liberty which implies that if left to their own devices man will peruse his own interests even at the costs of his fellow man. Mill does not make a clear declaration exalting or condemning the nature of man. However, Mill does make clearly negative statements about the nature of man. "There has been a time when the element of spontaneity and individuality was in excess, and the social principle had a hard struggle with it." (Mill 57) Mill's insinuation that the free and unrestricted actions of men can cause conflict is to be expected nonetheless it disguises Mill's true position on man's nature. It is the subtly inference that the use of spontaneity and individuality as a method of ordering one's actions somehow runs contrary to the social principle, which shows a clear mistrust of man's unrestricted and uninhibited side. Another crucial factor which undoubtedly influenced the amount of freedom Mill an Locke believed man ought to have in political society was their view regarding the purpose of the state. Mill and Locke held completely opposite views regarding who should benefit from the existence of the state the individual or the community. According to Locke men are driven to congregate and form societies for "necessity, connivance and inclination..." (Locke 44) Locke believes that the purpose or end of the state is provide the nec...
