The Enlightenment

Natural born rights of citizens

Limits of the power of government

Social contract in which the citizens agree to be governed in exchange for their rights being protected

The consent of the governed: a government only has the power with the approval of the citizens.

Citizens have fundamental rights of "life, liberty, and property."

He believed that the most basic human law of nature is the preservation of mankind.

To preserve mankind, he reasoned that individuals have the right and duty to preserve their own lives.

These ideas were inspirational to Thomas Jefferson as he wrote the Declaration of Independence.