Abstract

CORTES RODAS, Francisco. Liberal social contract: John Locke. Co-herencia [online]. 2010, vol.7, n.13, pp.99-132. ISSN 1794-5887.

The author of this piece shows the key elements of the classic contractualist model of the State legitimacy, proposal by John Locke in his major work Two Essays on Civil Government. This essay pretend to bring out that although Hobbes as well as Locke used the instruments of the social contract in order to justify the origin of the political power and both of them come from similar categories there is, nevertheless, a big difference between them. Locke defends a model of the Liberal State and Hobbes personifies the justification of an absolutist State. This difference is emphasized basically because of the role that the doctrine of the resistance plays in Locke’s theory. This one allows to show how is possible to conceive a political form whose power is not be irresistible.

Keywords : Liberalism; Political Absolutism; Natural Law. Social Contract; John Locke; Thomas Hobbes.

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