Thomas Jefferson borrowed many ideas from which Enlightenment philosopher?

• A. Voltaire
• B. Rousseau
• C. John Locke
• D. Descartes

Answer: (C)

Enlightenment ideas about natural rights and government by consent shaped Thomas Jefferson’s political thinking. John Locke argued that people are born with natural rights to life, liberty, and property, and that governments exist only to protect those rights. If a government fails to do so or oversteps its power, people have the right to alter or abolish it. Jefferson built on this framework when drafting the Declaration of Independence, framing government as arising from the consent of the governed and existing to safeguard rights. The famous phrase life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness echoes Locke’s emphasis on natural rights and the purpose of government.

Other Enlightenment thinkers contributed in important ways too. Voltaire stressed civil liberties like freedom of expression and religious tolerance, Rousseau explored the idea of the general will and popular sovereignty, and Descartes laid groundwork in rationalist theory. But the direct political influence on Jefferson’s approach is most clearly aligned with John Locke’s philosophy.