History Quiz - Sovereignty, Enlightenment, and Social Contract Theory

What is Sovereignty?

The right and power to govern

• Define Popular Sovereignty.

The idea that power in a government comes from the consent of people

What is State Sovereignty?

the idea that each state has the power to govern itself

Define Individual Sovereignty/Autonomy/Self-Governance.

The idea that individuals have control over their own bodies, beliefs, and actions

What is Legitimacy in government?

Acceptance

Describe The Enlightenment.

An intellectual movement that emphasized reason, science, individual rights, and new ideas about government and society

In the context of the Enlightenment, what is Reason?

Using logic and thinking to understand things and make decisions

Define Rationality.

sensible or reasoned

What does Equality mean in political theory?

The state of being treated the same as others, especially under the law

Explain the Social Contract Theory.

people agree give up some freedom and follow laws in exchange for protection and order from government

What are Natural Rights?

Rights inherent to all human beings from birth, such as the rights to life, liberty, and property

Define Natural Law.

Rules about right and wrong that come from nature, not people

Describe the State of Nature.

what life would hypothetically be like before society

What is the Divine Right of Kings?

god picked the king

Define Monarchy.

A form of government where supreme power is held by a single ruler

What is Absolute Power?

Having complete control with no limit or rules

What is a Representative Government?

A system where people elect leaders to make decisions for them

Who was Thomas Hobbes?

believed people need a strong gov to keep order, disliked people, life dangerous without gov, people agree to give up some freedom to a ruler (social contract), supported absolute power

Who was John Locke?

believed people were born w natural rights, everyone has the right to life liberty and property, believed gov exists to protect rights not people, if a gov becomes unfair people may overthrow

Who was Jean-Jacques Rousseau?

believed people were naturally good but society may corrupt, best gov follows “general will” (what most ppl want), believed people should have freedom and equality

Direct democracy

a system where people vote on laws and decisions themselves, not through leaders