... of government, and freedom of conscience. The controversies of this period produced one of the classics of liberal thinking, Areopagitica (1644), a treatise by the poet and prose writer John Milton in which he advocated freedom of thought and expression. One of the opponents of liberal thinking, the philosopher Thomas Hobbes, contributed significantly to liberal theory, although he favored strong ... the equality of individuals, opened the way to free criticism of government and the right to revolution, ideas that Hobbes himself opposed. An influential early liberal was the English phil...

• Word Count: 788
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Graduate

... the main trait that distinguishes man from other animal species (animal meaning nonhuman) is sentience, or "the ability to think, feel, perceive, or experience subjectively" ("Sentience"). John Locke, esteemed philosophical essayist and one of the most influential people of the 17th century, states in his work Concerning Human Understanding of Ideas that an "idea is the ... ...

• Word Count: 1661
• Approx Pages: 7
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Graduate

... Madison's opinion, independent. To assure such independence, no one branch should have too much power in selecting members of the other two branches. In his Second Treatise of Civil Government, John Locke stated that "it is not without reason the [man] seeks out and is willing to join in society with others who are already united, or have a mind to unite ... ...

• Word Count: 329
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: Graduate