Revolt is the right of the people
Interpretation
People have the right to challenge and oppose their government when it becomes unjust.
John Locke's quote emphasizes the fundamental principle that if a government fails to protect the rights and freedoms of its citizens, the people have not only the right but also the duty to revolt against such tyranny. This concept has been influential in shaping democratic ideals and the notion of rightful resistance, affirming that authority should be derived from the consent of the governed.
In practice
During a speech about civil rights, you might use this quote to emphasize the importance of standing up against oppressive regimes.
For where is the man that has incontestable evidence of the truth of all that he holds, or of the falsehood of all he condemns; or can say that he has examined to the bottom all his own, or other men's opinions? The necessity of believing without knowledge, nay often upon very slight grounds, in this fleeting state of action and blindness we are in, should make us more busy and careful to inform ourselves than constrain others.
There is frequently more to be learned from the unexpected questions of a child than the discourses of men.
Reading furnishes the mind only with materials of knowledge; it is thinking that makes what we read ours.
Our deeds disguise us. People need endless time to try on their deeds, until each knows the proper deeds for him to do. But every day, every hour, rushes by. There is no time.
New opinions are always suspected, and usually opposed, without any other reason but because they are not already common.
I have always thought the actions of men the best interpreters of their thoughts.
Both angels and demons are ignorant of the future, yet they make predictions. The angels do so when God reveals the future to them and commands them to prophesy, and what they prophesy comes to pass. Demons also make predictions, but these are only guesses based on what they see from afar.
I know no religion that destroys courtesy, civility, and kindness.
We are the species who cooks. No other species cooks. And when we learned to cook, we became truly human.
Every science begins as philosophy and ends as art; it arises in hypothesis and flows into achievement.
It is a useless life that is not consecrated to a great ideal. It is like a stone wasted on the field without becoming a part of any edifice.
In this world, there is a kind of painful progress. Longing for what we've left behind, and dreaming ahead.
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