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Lesson 2: Why did the Founders believe that people needed a government?

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Lesson Purpose

In this lesson, you will learn some of the Founders’ most important ideas about our basic rights. You will learn the Founders’ beliefs about where these rights come from. Finally, you will learn why the Founders believed that people must have government.

Lesson Objectives

When you finish this lesson, you should be able to explain the Founders’ ideas about our rights and the purposes of our government.

Lesson Terms

property
Things that you own, such as books, a house, land, or a business. Your labor or work is also your property.
social contract
state of nature

Lesson Biographies

Locke, John (1632-1704 CE)
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