Jhon locke was born in was England. His father was an attorney.

He studied medicine
from Oxford after which he started practicing. It was during this time that he made a
friend Lord Ashley Cooper who was the founding member of the Wigs Party. Under his
influence John Locke started writing on politics. "Fragments on government " is his most
important work.

During his time there was relative peace in England. Due to peace his focus was not
security of life. The peace situation influenced his views about human nature. The
power struggle still continued between Royalists and Republicans. Under the influence
of his friend and his father (who fought in civil war against the king), he favoured
parliament because there was no threat of security.

Locke's social contract theory states that man by nature is good, cooperative, peaceful,
caring. He had a positive prespective about human nature. According to Locke in state
of nature there was peace and harmony with certanity of life. In state of nature people
enjoyed certain natural rights. Every person had some rights by birth which included the
right of life, liberty and property. This era was social and pre-political. Over the period of
time life became complex as a result property disputes emerged. Disputes
compromised the natural rights of the people and people wanted to solve those disputes
but didn't knew how to. Some wise people came together and advised to make a
contract which is also referred to as " social contract".

An oral contract was made which said "I Surrender all my rights not to a man or an
assembly of men but to the community as a whole." After this contract another verbal
contract was made, between community and representatives."We surrender all our
rights to you on the condition that you will protect our natural rights." Locke says the
contracts their lives changed forever.

This theory implied that the people got politically organised and formed a state. It was
an artificial state. In this state the community is sovereign. This contract was bi lateral
and conditional. First contract was among the people so it was social which created a
state and community sovereignty. Second contract was between the community and
representatives and this contract established government, which will serve the
community. First contract is social while second is political. In case the representatives
failed to serve the community the community will stand void.

Locke was the first person to differentiate between government and state. The rulers
and the ruled together constitute the state. Whereas those entrusted with the
responsibility to rule form the government. Locke also made clear that people have no
right to revolt against the state but they can revolt against the government. If a
government fails to protect the natural rights of the people it deserves to be changed.
Locke also supported the change of government by the British people in 1688 as he
believed that the Kings were doing no good and deserved to be changed.

Locke also believed in popular sovereignty rather than legal sovereignty ie. After the
contract community will be sovereign.
Locke opposed the idea of absolute sovereignty. He advocated government based on
division of powers and subjected to number of limitations. These limitations are as
follows :It could not violate the natural rights of the people. Government will work for
public, It could not govern arbitrarily, It must govern according to the laws, It could not
tax the individuals without their consent. Source of power is the people and The laws of
the government should conform with the laws of nature. A government which violated its
limitations was not worthy of obedience. Thus, Locke advocated limited govemment.

Locke's contract implied the rule of majority. The law of nature could not be enforced by
the state, unless the minority submitted to the will of majority. The majority had the right
to act for the whole community.Locke depicted a constitutional state where the
relationship between people and government and among people themselves will be
determined by the rule of law not by arbitrariness. According to Locke, government are
only the deputies or trustees of the people, who can be discarded if they fail. Locke
wanted to subordinate the government to the community. He said government exists for
the good of the people and can be legitimately removed. Locke describes the supreme
power of governance as "Legislative authority". If the Legislative authority is in the
hands of one man, it is monarchy. If this power is vested in the hands of few selected
persons, by the consent of the majority, it is aristocracy and if the community retains the
legislative power in its own hands and appoints few officers for executing the laws, the
government is a democracy. Locke considers a limited democracy in the hands of
delegates, controlled by election, as the best form of government.

He declared that "consent of the people is the basis of the government The idea of
consent occupies a very important place in the political philosophy of Locke. He has
challenged the autocratic rule of the king by emphassing that govemment is to be run
according to the consent of the people. Locke wanted to place people's cause at a high
point. According to Locke people are the source of political power. The community
retains the supreme power. Locke originated the theory of separation of power and
checks and balance. He said legislature will control the executive. Legislature is
constituted by the representatives of people and hence popular will is expressed
through the legislature. The legislative power is limited to the public good of the society.
When a government does something contrary to public good or violates the law of
nature, it is to be overthrown by popular revolt. Sovereignty is vested in the community.
Locke repudiated the sovereignty of Hobbes.
Even though lockes ideas might appear quite appealing but his social contract theory is
unrealistic - a social contract such as Locke describes almost never has happened.

Locke's social contract theory assumes that we are (or generates us as) separate,
independent individuals, whereas we are members of families who have friends, I.e., we
have social ties when we go to create the social contract, as well as our independence
and our rights to

life, liberty, and property. Locke's social contract theory is backwards-looking: it aims to
"preserve" the rights we had in the state of nature, it does not aim to allow new
governments to improve social conditions if they contradict those 'backwards-looking'
rights. (Think here, for instance, of how 'property rights' can be used to oppose social
welfare measures, or how a Second Amendment [the gun amendment], suitable for an
age of militias, now just wrecks havoc in the US.)

Locke's social contract theory is elitist, or biased towards those who have, work for, or
inherit property, because - while everyone has a right to property- the great benefits of
property-ownership fall to those who have property.

Locke's social contract theory is more hard-hearted than Hobbes's with Hobbes, at least
f you are starving, you have a right of distress, ie, you have a justification for stealing
food but with Locke, the right to property is as absolute as the right to lide, and so you
cannot steal someone's property to allow you to exercise or continue your right to life.

Locke not only crafted a unique take on the social contract theory, focusing on consent,
but he answered every question or doubt imaginable to support it, which further proves
its legitimacy. Locke put his own theory up to every theoretical test and it passed. In
response to the overwhelming critics of Locke's social contract theory, I believe that
they do a great job of either twisting Locke's words or completely ignoring Locke's own
explanations to their concerns. Through my analysis I have found that Locke's theory is
not only a solid normative argument but a solid empirical argument as well. While
Locke's social contract theory may no longer translate well around the world. especially
places who reject democracy, I think that it is a practical explanation of how government
began and how it should remain to serve the people it has jurisdiction over.