Two Treatises of Government · Question
How does Two Treatises of Government develop the theme of Consent of the Governed?
Answer
Two Treatises of Government by John Locke develops Consent of the Governed across the chapters the companion marks for this theme.
Legitimate political authority derives from the consent of the people, who voluntarily unite into society and establish government through mutual agreement, not from divine right or paternal inheritance.
The second treatise is described as an essay concerning the true original, extent, and end of civil government, implying a foundation in consent rather than divine right.
Locke argues that if Filmer's foundation fails, governments must be 'made by contrivance, and the consent of men,' emphasizing the role of popular consent in political society.
By exposing the incoherence of hereditary divine right, Locke implicitly argues that legitimate government must rest on consent rather than inheritance from Adam.
Evidence in the book
- Two Treatises of Government
The second treatise is described as an essay concerning the true original, extent, and end of civil government, implying a foundation in consent rather than divine right.
- II: Of Paternal and Regal Power
Locke argues that if Filmer's foundation fails, governments must be 'made by contrivance, and the consent of men,' emphasizing the role of popular consent in political society.
- X: Of the Heir to Adam’s Monarchical Power
By exposing the incoherence of hereditary divine right, Locke implicitly argues that legitimate government must rest on consent rather than inheritance from Adam.
- XI: Who Heir?
Locke implies that without a clear divine designation, government must rest on human prudence and consent, not on an unknowable hereditary right.
- Book II: Of Civil Government
Legitimate government is established through the consent of the people, not by hereditary or divine right.
- Of Political or Civil Society
Locke emphasizes that civil society arises from voluntary compact and that all members, including the legislature, are subject to laws they have consented to.
- Of the Beginning of Political Societies
Central to the chapter: Locke asserts that all legitimate political power originates from the consent of free individuals to unite into a community.
- X: Of the Forms of a Commonwealth
The majority's power to establish and change the form of government underscores that political authority originates from the consent of the community.
