Did you know that the concepts of freedom and equality come from **? Have you ever wondered how these rights, which we take for granted today, were acquired after centuries of struggle and theoretical development?
In this process, there is a work that plays a decisive role, and it is Locke's "On **".
Locke was a British philosopher, political scientist, and economist who is known as the "father of liberalism", and his "On the Treatise" is a great work that pioneered liberalism.
It provides us with a new perspective on how to understand politics and society, and it also provides theoretical and practical guidance for us to fight for and protect our rights to freedom and equality.
Locke published "** Treatise" in 1690, in China in the twenty-ninth year of Kangxi, the Qing Dynasty was in full swing, if anyone dared to talk about equality with the emperor, it was definitely a big crime to punish the nine clans.
In England, the year had just been the Glorious Revolution, when the English overthrew James II for the first time without bloodshed, and passed the Bill of Rights to limit the power of the crown, thus beginning the constitutional monarchy.
This was an epoch-making act in history, as it shook the foundations of the absolute rule of the monarch to which people had long been accustomed. The Bill of Rights affirmed the final power of the People's Assembly to make laws, and the monarch could not make or repeal laws on his own.
Locke wanted to demonstrate the legitimacy and rationality of this new system, and he wanted to make the fruits of the Glorious Revolution perpetuate, so he wrote this work that had a profound impact on later political science.
Locke's "Treatise on **" mainly discusses the following issues:
First: What is the state of nature? What are the natural rights of people in the state of nature?
Locke's interpretation is that the state of nature is the state of human life without ** and law, and in the state of nature people enjoy equality and freedom, without subordination, and without domination and slavery.
The natural rights of people in the state of nature include the right to life, liberty, and property, which are God-given and inalienable, and no one can infringe upon or impair these rights of others.
Second: What is the social contract? How is the social contract formed? What is the purpose of the social contract?
According to Locke, the social contract refers to the agreement that people voluntarily give up some of their natural rights in order to protect their natural rights and hand over these rights to a public authority to exercise, thus forming a political society.
The purpose of the social contract is to better safeguard people's lives, liberty and property, and to avoid insecurity and injustice in the state of nature.
Third: What is **? The power comes from **? What are the limits of power?
Locke believes that ** is the power established by people through the social contract, its power is authorized by the people, and its duty is to carry out the will of the people, safeguard the interests of the people and protect the rights of the people.
*'s power is limited, it must comply with the provisions of the social contract, it cannot be changed or violated at will, and it cannot abuse or exceed the scope of its own power.
Fourth: What is Legislation and Enforcement? Why separate legislation and enforcement? What are the benefits of separating legislation and enforcement?
Locke had a unique insight into this issue, pointing out that legislation is the power to make laws and enforcement is the power to enforce laws, and that the two must be separated.
Because if the same person or institution both makes laws and enforces them, it will lead to the injustice and irrationality of the law, as well as the corruption and ** of power, which is beyond doubt, from the Jinyiwei of the Ming Dynasty to the Cheka of the former Soviet Union.
The advantage of separating legislation from law enforcement is that it can make the law more in line with the will and interests of the people, and it can also make power more constrained and supervised, so as to prevent abuse and infringement of power.
Fifth: What is the right to revolution? Under what circumstances can the people exercise their revolutionary power? What does the right to revolution do?
Locke pointed out that the right to revolution is the power of the people to overthrow this unjustified ** and establish a new ** when they violate the social contract, betray the will of the people, and lose their legitimacy.
The role of the revolutionary right is to safeguard the natural rights of the people, to guarantee the freedom and equality of the people, and to prevent the development of the people.
Sixth: What is the right to private property? How do private property rights come about? What is the significance of private property rights?
In Locke's view, the right to private property refers to the ownership of property acquired by a person through labor, which does not require the consent of others, and has no right to interfere.
The meaning of private property rights is to protect the fruits of individual labor, stimulate people's creativity, and promote the prosperity and development of society, which is also a necessary prerequisite for political freedom.
Locke's theory subverted the concept of divine authority of kings, and used logical methods to fundamentally deny the divine inheritance of kings.
It proves that all men are equal to each other, and there is equality between the king and the subjects, and that no one has the right to rule or enslave others.
He redefined that the basis of legitimacy is the approval of the people, and used social contract theory to explain the formation of ** and the ** of power.
It is believed that the power of the people is the authorization of the people, and the duty of the people is to implement the will of the people and safeguard the interests of the people.
*'s power is limited, must comply with the provisions of the social contract, cannot be arbitrarily changed or violated by the law, and cannot abuse or exceed the scope of one's own power.
* One of the most basic rights to be protected is the right to property, because people have real freedom only when they have property, and a proletarian who has no land on top and no place to stand on the ground will not have freedom and equality.
In the same way, a person who has property but may be taken away at any time cannot be free and equal.
**Ten Thousand Fans Incentive Plan Power cannot be private, property cannot be publicly owned, the determination of the private property system is the fundamental guarantee of prosperity, the theory of Locke, the father of liberalism, has affected almost all countries in the world today, and freedom and equality are also the most basic political principles of today's society.
The Founding Fathers of the United States were deeply inspired by Locke's ideas, and they quoted Locke in the Declaration of Independence.
It declares that "all men are created equal, and that the Creator has endowed them with certain inalienable rights, which include the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness".
and declares that "when any form of ** has a detrimental effect on the achievement of these ends, the people have the right to change or abolish it and establish a new **".
Under Locke's spiritual guidance, they righteously rebelled against British colonial rule and established an independent state.
There is no doubt that Locke also had a profound impact on China, because our core values are also clearly written in democracy, freedom, equality, and the rule of law, which shows that our understanding and pursuit of politics and society are in sync with the world and in line with the universal aspirations of mankind.
Let's understand these words more deeply, so that these values are not only written on the wall, but also deeply integrated into everyone's soul, because these are the only cornerstones for a country to become prosperous and strong.