100 must-read books for college students

Chapter 43 Theoretical Works of Western Political Thought

Chapter 42 Theoretical Works of Western Political Thought: "On Government"

The doctrine of separation of powers proposed in Locke's "Essay on Government" not only influenced the development of bourgeois political theory, but also

and become

The theoretical basis of bourgeois democracy.His theory of separation of powers was further developed in Montesquieu's legal thought.

development; in many political-historical documents of the bourgeoisie, such as the American Declaration of Independence and the French Declaration of the Rights of Man,

Locke's doctrine of separation of powers has been fully reflected.It is no exaggeration to say that the political system of modern Western capitalism
To a large extent, it is the actual realization of Locke's political theory.

Criticism of Feudal Autocracy "On Government" was published

John Locke (1632-1704) was a famous British philosopher and political thinker in the 17th century.
An outstanding representative of philosophy.

The bourgeois revolution in England lasted from 1640 to 1688.In the past few decades, the struggle has been fierce and repeated. In theory,
The debate is also complex and intense. The bourgeois parliamentary constitutional monarchy established after the compromise of the two classes in 1688 required
It is necessary to sort out and summarize the political and ideological controversy, and attack all royalist theories and absolutism in order to consolidate one's own unified
rule.

Locke's "Government" came out in this political and social background, and it embodies Locke's achievements in political theory.

At once.Locke's "Government" concentratedly reflects his political thought. In this book, Locke stands on the side of the bourgeoisie.
From the standpoint, he deeply criticized the feudal autocratic system, and used the theory of natural law to demonstrate that people established a country and enacted laws.
The inevitability and rationality of the law, expounded the necessity and justice of the people to overthrow the feudal autocratic system, and proposed the
system, form of government, separation of powers, etc.

Liberty and Equality Theory Democratic Political Basis

The first part focuses on criticizing the divine right of kings represented by Filmer's "The Patriarch Returns the King's Natural Power", and the second part embodies his own
own political theory.

Locke pointed out that Filmer's theory is representative of royalist theory, and its core concept

The point is that the divine right of kings and the throne should be hereditary.In this regard, Locke put forward his theory of the state of nature and the theory of social contract.

Locke said that before mankind entered civilized society, there was a state of nature stage, when all people were free and equal

, Independent, neither state power nor legal system, and no oppression or exploitation of people.

Locke believes that everyone has three universal natural rights namely life, liberty and property.The so-called right to life is
Preserving everyone's life is everyone's basic right.Without this right, there can be no other rights;
The right to liberty means that people enjoy the freedom of nature, and are not subject to and restricted by any other law except the law of nature; property rights are
Refers to the domination of people over what they have obtained through their own labor.Locke clearly shows that these rights are given by the Creator,

It is innate and inviolable to anyone under any circumstances.

In a state of nature, all are equal and free, and there are no laws and national governments that make sense of how people constitute
Social order, Locke pointed out, is due to natural law.

Natural law is the moral code that people must abide by.
It is an unshakable code of conduct for people.The function of natural law is to bring people first out of the state of nature and then into civilized society
, thus creating a country.

Since
In the current state, most people do not strictly abide by the principles of fairness and justice, and people's enjoyment of property is very insecure, that is to say
, the state of nature is a condition that, while free, is fraught with fear and constant danger.Why is it like this?this

If there are defects in the following three aspects in the state of nature: first, there is a lack of a definite and regular
Known laws laid down, accepted and recognized by the common will, as a standard of right and wrong, and adjudicating disputes between them

common scale.

Second, the absence in the state of nature of a right to
A known and impartial arbiter of all disputes by prescribed laws.

Third, in the state of nature, there is often a lack of power to support the correct judgment so that it will be carried out as it should.

It is part of human nature to strive for perfection.Considering the many defects in the state of nature, people in the rational (law of nature)

Under the instructions of the government, they have to try to break away from the natural state and establish a political society that is more conducive to their own survival.how to create a country

What about the government?Locke believes that the first establishment of political society by human beings is carried out through contracts.Man is born free, equal
Equal and independent, any one person can be subject to the political power of another person or organization only with his own consent.and

This consent of many must be expressed by contract.Fundamental principles for building a political society by means of a social contract
It is: First, each combiner does not give up all the natural rights, but gives up some of the rights to the whole society, that is, the individual

the right to punish criminals; secondly, that each combiner gives part of the right to the society as a whole rather than to an individual, and the society as a whole is governed by
Two functions arise: one is to determine what is a violation of natural law, and the other is how to punish a violation of natural law, which is the whole

the political power of the society; thirdly, the action of the political society depends on the majority of the society, the majority has the right to act, and

The rest of the people must obey, because at any time and on any occasion, there will be a small number of people who cannot attend public gatherings due to illness or other reasons.

edge of
Therefore, in addition, differences of opinion and conflicts of interests are always inevitable in a collection of various people, so the majority of people
Opinions are regarded as the opinions of all, so the principle of majority must always be adhered to, so that he has laid the foundation for democratic politics;
Fourth, political society, relying on the strength of the social collective, still protects the life, liberty and property rights of citizens, which are determined by nature

Rights become inalienable rights enjoyed by citizens.

When people establish a political society, that is, a country and a government, according to the basic principles of society above, what forms should they take and their
What basic principles should be based on?Locke believes that the main purpose of the state established by the social contract is to protect the liberty of citizens,

person and property, and to achieve this political end the form of national government is crucial.The state form of government mainly depends on
The ownership of the legislative power, he believes that the form of government is determined by the affiliation of the highest power, that is, the legislative power.So make a law
Whose power belongs to determines what form the state takes.That is to say, the attribution of legislative power is the criterion for dividing the regime.root
According to this criterion, Locke divided the state into four forms: democracy, oligarchy, monarchy and mixed regime.In these four
body, Locke believes that the most ideal
The form of government is a constitutional monarchy as a form of democracy.

The state and the government are a kind of authority. With the help of its authority, it fulfills the principles on which people established it and realizes its purpose.

So what exactly are the powers of the state or government, and are there any limits to these powers?Locke also explained this.

It is his theory of limited government power.Locke believed that the national government originated from the social contract, and the power of the government was essentially

Belonging to the people, therefore, the power of the government is limited.He divided state power into three parts: legislative, executive and federal
Alliance power.Among them, the highest power is the legislative power. He pointed out: In all occasions, as long as the government exists, the legislative power is the highest power.

force.However, the parliamentary power of the legislature is not absolute and has certain limitations.

It should be seen that the right of the revolution is to limit the government

a positive force.He believed that before the government was established, the people had signed a contract and put forward the conditions for obeying the government, and

After the government is established, it is monitored by revolutionary rights.

In order to achieve this goal of the government and prevent the emergence of abuse of power and tyranny, Locke proposed his three principles:
The political doctrine of separation of powers.He divides national political power into: legislative power, executive power and coalition power.Legislative power is the enjoyment of the

Use rights to guide how to use state power to defend the rights of this society and its members.Executive power is a constant negative

power to enforce the law.The right of alliance refers to the decision of war and peace, union and alliance, and all people and societies abroad.

The power to conduct various affairs.Of the three powers, the legislative is the highest, and the form of government is determined by this highest

The affiliation of power is determined.Executive power and external power are auxiliary and subordinate to legislative power.Locke said that the legislature
The legislature has the power to make laws, and without the approval of the legislature, no order by anyone can have the force of law
.

Locke paid special attention to the legislative and executive powers.He explained and defined the meaning and relationship between the two in detail.hemin

It is rightly pointed out that the legislative power and the executive power are two kinds of different powers, the former is the supreme power which exists for a short time, and the latter

It is a power that often exists below the legislative power.In terms of the relationship between the two, Locke particularly emphasized the separation of legislative and executive powers

, the two must never be attributed to the same person or the same institution.

These two powers are still mutually restrictive. Although the legislative power is the highest power, the legislative power is subject to the executive power.

contain.

In "On Government", Locke put forward and demonstrated through social contract theory, limited government theory, separation of powers theory, etc.
Got him
theory of liberty and equality.In the Social Contract Theory, Locke opposed Hobbes' claim of the total transfer of natural rights and proposed

Everyone retains the right to life, liberty, and property, and the proposed contract is a contract promised by the ruler.

His contract theory is both the foundation of democratic theory and the source of his liberalism.

Constitutional Monarchy Contributions to Treatise on Government

"Treatise of Government" is a product of the era of British bourgeois revolution in the 17th century, and occupies an important position in the history of Western political thought.

On the issue of the origin of the state, it explains a secular theory of the origin of the state, opposes the idea of ​​the divine right of kings, and puts forward the theory of separation of powers and
The supremacy of parliamentary power; advocates a constitutional monarchy with the king under parliament and opposes hereditary monarchy; outspokenly states the purpose of government
Just
In order to protect the inalienability of private property and individual rights, the sanctity of private property, the separation of powers and parliamentary government, and the legal
These principles have played a progressive role in promoting the Western bourgeois revolution and social development.The politics in this book

On the first British bourgeois revolution of world significance made a good defense, his political thought became the British monarch
The theoretical foundation of the constitutional system, and the constitutional monarchy system laid the foundation for the final establishment of the bourgeois democratic system.

Political and economic development played a huge role in promoting the bourgeoisie's democratic politics and legal system construction.Other
In addition, Locke's thought also had a direct impact on the bourgeois revolutions in the United States and France in the 18th century.pioneer of the american revolution

Pherson, Madison, Franklin and others have all turned to this book.Many of the principles in the Constitution of the United States embody

The principles advocated in this book.It can be said
Montesquieu's theory of separation of powers is supplemented and developed on the basis of Locke's theory of separation of powers
of.His social contract theory is also ideologically related to Locke's contract theory.In a broad sense, it can also be said that Locke
His philosophy became the basis of French Enlightenment thought.

(End of this chapter)