John Locke is known as one of the most influential philosophers of the 17th and 18th centuries. His ideas and influences are still evident today. He has been called the father of democracy and was one of the key men who shaped the American Constitution. (1) In my paper, I will discuss life and the significant contributions of John Locke.
             Locke was born in Wrington, in Somersetshire, in 1632. His parents were stern Puritans, but as he matured, he began to question the Puritan faith. He came from an affluent family. His father was a well-respected lawyer and a clerk to the local Justices of the Peace. When he was ten years old, war broke out in England and set the stage for his political writings. In 1646 he began to study at Westminister College and moved on to Christ Church, Oxford, as a junior student, in 1652. (2) In 1656, he earned a B.A. and an M.A. in 1658. Then in 1666, he became Lord Ashley's physician and counselor. While living with Lord Ashley, he put the knowledge he obtained at Oxford to good use by operating to remove a cyst from his liver that saved his friend's life. (3) Lord Shaftsbury, formally known as Lord Ashley, is appointed Lord President of the King's Council. ===== During his time in Holland, he allowed most of his time to concentrate on his studies and complete many of his writings. In 1689 both An Essay Concerning Human Understanding and Two Treatises of Civil Government were written. He then began living moved to Oates, the residence of Sir Francis and Lady Masham, and made it his permanent place of residence until he died in 1704.
             Locke's primary purpose in philosophy was "to inquire into the original, certainty, and extent of human knowledge, together with the grounds and degrees of belief, opinion, and assent."(5). His definition of an idea was any perception or concept of thought that exists In the mind. Michael Ayers explains in his book how Locke's definition of ideas could take ...