Category: American Government
Topic: Foundations of American Government

Which Enlightenment thinker’s ideas about natural rights and government by consent heavily influenced the Declaration of Independence?

1: Thomas Hobbes

2: John Locke

3: Montesquieu

4: Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Category: American Government
Topic: Foundations of American Government

Answer

John Locke

Explanation

John Locke’s ideas about natural rights, including life, liberty, and property, and his belief in government by the consent of the governed, greatly influenced the Declaration of Independence.