Foundations of Liberalism: Hobbes and Locke

Origins of Liberal Ideology

The precursor of this ideology was Thomas Hobbes, whose work raises some fundamental elements that constitute liberal thought. An interesting aspect of his work is his theory of the legitimacy of power. Hobbes was the initiator of methodological individualism, which breaks with the Aristotelian-scholastic tradition. In Hobbes' view, political society has an artificial origin. From there, it is necessary to justify the existence of political power. In his social contract theory, he answers the question of how and why each person must recognize their connection to state authority, arguing that the individual owes obedience to a real state able to accommodate the functions for which it is created, safeguarding social peace.

John Locke: The First Liberal Theorist

John Locke may be considered the first liberal theorist. His Second Treatise on Civil Government (1689) is the most elaborate rationalization of the Glorious Revolution of 1688 and contains the key elements of his political thought. The recognition of fundamental human rights includes the right to life, liberty, and property. These rights exist independently of the state and cannot be eliminated or restricted except by the consent of the owners. Hence, the origin of civil society and the state is the product of a social contract that binds people together in a community that claims constituent power, and another by which it delivers its exercise to certain representatives linked by a relationship of trust.

Driven by the uncertainty arising from a state of nature, individuals institute a political power in which limited functions are delegated to ensure individual rights, arbitrate disputes, and maintain social order and security. This contract is seen as a means to support his theory of political obligation. Basic rights include the right of property, justified as a right arising from the need for self-preservation. He argues that this right is obtained through work and cultivation. Money allows for the accumulation of more wealth than that derived exclusively from work. His theory is an anticipation of the labor theory of value. The social state under the contract is limited to the exercise of the aforementioned functions. There is a limitation on the purposes of government and a corresponding restriction of its effective powers.

The Limits of State Power

1. State power must be limited to carrying out specific purposes, such as the protection of life, property, health, and the liberty of citizens. Locke theorized the neutrality of the state regarding the freedom of citizens. As the first theorist of the principle of religious tolerance, he offers a spirited defense of the need for the state to tolerate all religious creeds and practices, provided they do not interfere with civil rights or attempt to impose themselves as a public religion. In this framework, religions are deprived of their potential for political conflict.