Get out your Foreign Influences Cornell Notes

People Who Influenced the Founding Fathers

Who influenced the Founding Fathers?

• We are going to focus on two important people from the Enlightenment:– John Locke– Baron de Montesquieu

Let’s take a trip back in time.

2010

1687

• It was a time in history when certain thinkers and writers believed they knew more than other people and set off to “enlighten” them. • They believed

the power of reason could be used to help government and build a better world.

What is the Enlightenment?

Where was the Enlightenment?

John Locke

PhilosopherBorn August 29, 1632 Studied at Westminster School

and Christ Church, Oxford SingleWrote Two Treatises of

Government

Photo from iep.utm.edu

SnapshotDOB: August 1632DOD: October 1704From: EnglandNetworks: Westminster School, Christ Church, Oxford, Royal Society

Ideas Impact

Info

“ ”Locke had multiple ideas that influenced the

Founders:

Ideas

Natural Rights/Natural Law

Social Contract

Natural Rights

John Locke believed all humans have natural rights, which are rights that all people have just because they are human being. They are:• Life• Liberty• Property

Natural Rights/Law

Imagine a group of people are out at sea and their boat is shipwrecked on a deserted island There is no government There are no laws According to Locke, this is known as a “state of

nature”

What are some of the advantages and

disadvantages of living in a state of nature?

Natural Law

• Natural law is…• A higher, unchanging set of rules that govern

human relations

NATURAL LAW

Natural Rights/Law:rights that all people have and

the rules that protect those rights

Individually, answer this question:

What is the purpose of government?

Now think about this question…

Social Contract

Locke proposed that in order to keep our natural rights, the people must engage in a social contract

• An unwritten agreement between the people and the government

• The people agree to live under a government and obey its laws. • In return, the government agrees to protect the people

Go To Natural Rights/Law

Social Contract:An unwritten agreement between

people and their government.

Impact

• According to Locke, the purpose of government is to protect the natural rights of individuals

• The Founders agreed and included these natural rights and social contract in the Declaration of Independence.

• The Founders also included the idea of social contract in the first three words of the Preamble to the United States Constitution…

…that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed…

The Constitution also limits the powers of

government to protect the rights

of the people.

Charles-Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu

Photo from constitution.org

Info

Ideas Impact

SnapshotDOB: January 18, 1689DOD: 1755From: Le Bréde, FranceNetworks: University of Bordeaux, Parlement of Bordeaux

Information from http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/montesquieu/

Philosopher and Political Thinker Born in Le Bréde, France January

18, 1689 Studied Law at the University of

Bordeaux MarriedWrote On the Spirit of the Laws

Montesquieu is most famous for his discussions on the need for a “separation of powers” in

government

Ideas

What is the “separation of power”?

Power must be separated…why?

What would a society look like if one person or group had all of the power (no separation of

power) and no one could challenge or “check” that power?

Is this a fair society? What would the

rights of the people be like?

Should there be limits on what

government can or can’t do?

FLREA Copyright 2012

How do we keep government from becoming too powerful?

Montesquieu argued that in order to keep a government from becoming too powerful: Power must be separated Power must be checked Power must be balanced

Photo from constitution.org

POWERPOWER

POWERPOWER

POWER POWER POWER

What if we separate and check power?

Someone makes the

laws

Someone else enforces

the laws

Someone else says what the

laws meanThe government

proposes and passes a curfew

of 10pm for those under the

age of 18. Penalty results

in fines or arrest.

The President approves the bill and

the City of Smithville’s police are instructed to

enforce the curfew. Police arrest a

student for riding their bike home at

10:30pm.

The student challenges the arrest

because they were coming home from

work. Does the law apply to those under 18 who

are coming home from work?

Legislative Branch

Executive Branch

Judicial Branch

Click Here to go back to Montesquieu’s Profile

Separation of powers-

Power is separated so no person or group becomes too powerful

FLREA Copyright 2012

The Founders were certain to include the separation of power in the Constitution when it was written in order to make sure no one was able to become too powerful What were they scared of?

Impact

They didn’t want to see something resembling a monarchy develop by giving one branch of government too much power.

• If you have your syllabus or folder, please get it out now.

• Get out your Foreign Influences Cornell notes.

• Get out a piece of paper. Put your name, date, and class period on it. Number it 1-5 without skipping lines.

ForeignInfluences

Magna Carta

Baron de Montesquieu

English Bill of Rights

John Locke

• Document• Written in 1215 by English nobles who

forced the King to sign it. • Big Idea: Limited government

• Document• Written in 1689 by English Parliament• Big idea: Extended rights to all English

citizens even those living in the American colonies

• British philosopher• Natural rights/natural law- rights

that all people have that cannot be taken from them. Such as life, liberty, and property.

• Social contract- an unwritten agreement between the people and their government. The people obey the government, the government protects the people.

Both ideas were used in the D.O.I.

• French philosopher and political thinker• Separation of powers- all power

should not be given to one person or group. Give different powers to different branches.

Idea used in the Constitution (the three branches).

3-2-13- ideas that influenced the development of our government2- documents that influences the development1- person that influenced the development of our government