Who is John Locke?
Short Biography
• Born in 1632 - died in 1704 (England)
• Born to Puritan Parents
puritans
Short Bio Continued
• Graduated from
Oxford University
•Philosopher during
Enlightenment
The Two Treatises of Government
In order to understand
the document you must
first understand…
“the divine right of kings”
Divine=Divinity = God
Divine Right of Kings
The Divine Right of Kings means
that God choose some people to
rule on earth and do his will.
Therefore, whatever the king
decided was the will of God.
Divine Right of Kings
God chooses a king.
What the king said
was the will of God.
If you criticized the king
you challenged God.
The Two Treatises of Government
1st Treatises John Locke said:
There was no legitimate
government under The Divine
Right as King Theory.
Divine Right Theory
NOT TRUE NOT TRUE
The Two Treatises of Government
2nd Treatises said:
1. Everyone born with certain rights
a. Life
b. Liberty
c. Property
2. Role of the government to protect these rights.
3. If government didn’t provide protection than the
people had the right to overthrow the government.
John Locke’s Influence
His ideas from The Two Treatises of Government
were incorporated into the Declaration of
Independence.