John Locke: Natural Rights and Social Contract

Which idea describes people being born with a mind like a blank page that fills through experience?

• Natural rights of life and liberty

• Social contract between citizens

• Tabula rasa or blank slate

• State of nature without rules

Which set lists the natural rights John Locke believed all people share?

• Education, health, transportation

• Safety, order, obedience

• Power, wealth, status

• Life, liberty, property

What is the main purpose of government according to Locke?

• To replace personal choices

• To keep people from learning

• To control all property

• To end the state of nature

Which statement best explains a social contract in Locke’s theory?

• A promise to obey kings forever

• A trade of property for money only

• A rule forcing citizens to be silent

• An agreement to share rights for protection

In the state of nature, what condition would people face?

• Guaranteed property ownership

• Free education for everyone

• Perfect safety and order

• No rules and no protections

Which idea best explains why government power is divided into three branches?

• To increase liberty by sharing power

• To let one branch control decisions

• To make laws faster without review

• To remove limits on leaders' actions

In the U.S. system influenced by Montesquieu, what is the main job of Congress?

• Makes laws for the country

• Enforces laws through agencies

• Interprets laws in courts

• Chooses the king of England

A president signs a law that gives too much power to the executive branch. Which action shows checks and balances?

• Citizens ignore the law on their own

• Courts rule the law unconstitutional

• Congress increases the president’s budget

• The executive orders more agencies created

Which statement describes liberty as Montesquieu understood it?

• Rights that only kings can grant

• Power held mostly by a single ruler

• Freedom to do anything without rules

• Peace of mind from safety under laws

Montesquieu admired England’s government because power was split among a king, Parliament, and courts. What term did he use for this?

• Rule of law

• Separation of powers

• Popular sovereignty

• Direct democracy