Two Treatises of Government

John Locke's 1689 Two Treatises of Government is a key text in the history of political theory - one whose influence remains marked on modern politics, the American Constitution and beyond. In the second of Locke's treatises, the author goes on to construct his own argument concerning the sources of legitimate power, and the nature of that power. Carefully building his own argument from a logical consideration of man in "the state of nature", Locke creates a convincing argument that civilised society should be based on natural human rights and the social contract.