To substantiate the social
contract as a valid justification for the political
order, I will primarily
examine Locke's social contract between people and sovereign, rather than Hobbes's social contract among the people, because Locke's theory is generally superior and more contemporarily relevant. I will first examine the pre-political state of persons, which is the state of nature, and demonstrate that rational individuals are compelled to enter society by agreeing to the social contract. Secondly, I will
discuss the
principal advantage of the social contract, which is that the
government is legitimized by the consent of the people. Thirdly, I will discuss the principal advantage peculiar to Locke's formulation of the social contract, which is that the sovereign is held accountable for his actions. To more thoroughly examine the validity of the social contract in justifying a political order, I will discuss a possible objection to the use of the social contract, namely, that the social contract cannot oblige any but those who originally formed such a contract.
More summaries about the Lockes Social Contract: A Convincing Justification for the Political Order