John Locke

John Locke was born in Somerset, England, and attended some of the best

schools, including Oxford, available at the time. He studied both philosophy

and medicine there, and then later taught at Oxford from the age of twenty to

thirty-four. Locke wrote during a time of great turmoil in Europe at large, and

in England specifically. The unity of Western Europe under the Catholic Church

dissolved during the Reformation of the sixteenth century. Great violence,

including the Thirty Years War (1618-1648), occurred between different factions

of Europe for the greater part of two centuries. This violence is often loosely

labeled the "religious wars," as Protestants of various kinds and Catholics shed

each others' blood over religious views and their desire to control territory.

Today, however, this view of sixteenth and seventeenth century violence is hotly

debated, as other historians point out that Protestants' sometimes fought other

Protestants, while Catholics sometimes fought Catholics. An alternative expla-

nation for the violence of these centuries is that the birth-pangs of the nation

state required the elimination of all allegiances beyond or apart from the state

itself, that is, allegiances to a church that is beyond the control of a particular

state or to organizations such as different guilds. Many historians will see some

mix of causes. In any event, it was certainly a tumultuous time that begged for

a new formulation of the role of government as older models no longer fit the

needs of developing states.

One view of government was that monarchs were designated by God to rule by divine right. This view was supported by, for instance, Robert Filmer (1588- 1653), who would make the view of the monarch or "sovereign" the equivalent of law. On this view, the law equals what the monarch declares and there is no higher authority to be had. It is against this view that John Locke wrote his First Treatise of Government. His Second Treatise offers an alternative view of government. Here, Locke outlines why he believes people form themselves into societies, why they create central governing bodies, what makes up the limits of government, the legitimacy of the rule of law as opposed to the absolute rule of a monarch, the origins of property rights, and the legitimacy of economic inequality. The excerpts you will read are from the Second Treatise. Locke's writing was greatly appreciated and discussed in the American colonies; in fact, he was one of the principal writers of The Fundamental Constitutions of Carolina in 1669. We can only note briefly here that Locke was a controversial figure. In his own time, he took part in conspiracies to overthrow King Charles II and King James II of England and was a major proponent of the Glorious Revolution (1688). On the one hand, he appears to outline a theory of rights that protects individuals from tyranny and argues against slavery; on the other hand, he was an investor in the British slave trade and can be viewed as a defender of the rights of the propertied class against those without property or rights.


As you read the excerpts from John Locke's Second Treatise on Government, be sure to attend to the following issues:


1. How does Locke describe the state of nature? What is the difference be- tween license and liberty?


2. What reasons does Locke give for the formation of society and govern- ment? For Locke, what are the pursuits of human beings that government ought to protect?


3. What does Locke think justifies private ownership or property? What counts as property, according to Locke?


4. How does Locke believe inequality with respect to ownership originates? Does he think this inequality is justified? Why or why not?


5. According to Locke, does this inequality occur through violent or peaceful means?


6. The book of Genesis begins with a story of Adam and Eve living peacefully in the Garden of Eden. In chapter 2, Adam and Eve disobey the divine pro- hibition on eating the fruit, and are cast out. By chapter 3, and especially by chapter 11, we read of terrible antagonisms, alienations, and disrup- tions of human relationships to God, one another, and the land. Do you see any parallels to Locke's discussion of the state of nature and the state of war in his Second Treatise?


SECOND TREATISE OF GOVERNMENT (Selection)


From Second Treatise of Government, by John Locke, ed. By C.B. Macpherson. Hackett Publishing Company, Indianapolis, IN 1980. Used with permission.


1. "Political power then, I take to be a right of making laws with penalties of death and consequently all less penalties, for the regulating and preserving of property... and all this only for the public good" (§3).


2. "To understand political power right, and derive it from its original, we must con- sider, what state all men are naturally in, and that is, a state of perfect freedom to order their actions, and dispose of their possessions and persons, as they think fit within the bounds of the law of nature, without asking leave or depending upon the will of any other man" (§4).


3. "But though this be a state of liberty yet it is not a state of license...The state of nature has a law to govern it, which obliges every one: and reason, which is that law, teaches all mankind that being all equal and independent, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty, or possessions. Every one, as he is bound to preserve himself... so by the like reason, when his own preservation comes not in competition, ought he, as much as he can, to preserve the rest of mankind" (§6).


4. "Though the earth, and all inferior creatures, be common to all men, yet every man has a property in his own person; this nobody has any right to but himself. The labour of his body, and the work of his hands, we may say, are properly his. Whatsoever then he removes out of the state that nature hath provided, and left it in, he hath mixed his labour with, and joined to it something that is his own, and thereby makes it his property. It being by him removed from the common state na- ture hath placed it in, it hath by this labour something annexed to it, that excludes the common right of other men: for this labour being the unquestionable property of the labourer, no man but he can have a right to what that is once joined to, at least where there is enough, and as good, left in common for others" (§26).


5. "He that is nourished by the acorns he picked up under an oak, or the apples he gathered from the trees in the wood, has certainly appropriated them to himself. Nobody can deny but the nourishment is his. I ask then, when did they begin to be his? when he digested? or when he eat? or when he boiled? or when he brought them home? or when he picked them up? and it is plain, if the first gathering made them not his, nothing else could. That labour put a distinction between them and common: that added something to them more than nature, the common mother of all, had done; and so they became his private right. And will anyone say, he had no right to those acorns or apples, he thus appropriated, because he had not the consent of all mankind to make them his? Was it a robbery thus to assume to him- self what belonged to all in common? If such a consent as that was necessary, man had starved, notwithstanding the plenty God had given him. We see in commons, which remain so by compact, that it is the taking any part of what is common, and removing it out of the state nature leaves it in, which begins the property; without which the common is of no use. And the taking of this or that part, does not de- pend on the express consent of all the commoners. Thus the grass my horse has bit; the turfs my servant has cut; and the ore I have digged in any place, where I have a right to them in common with others, become my property, without the assigna- tion or consent of anybody. The labour that was mine, removing them out of that common state they were in, hath fixed my property in them" ($28).


6. "It will perhaps be objected to this, that if gathering the acorns, or other fruits of the earth, &c. makes a right to them, then anyone may ingross as much as he will. To which I answer, Not so. The same law of nature, that does by this means give us property, does also bound that property too. God has given us all things richly, 1 Tim. vi. 12. is the voice of reason confirmed by inspiration. But how far has he given it us? To enjoy. As much as any one can make use of to any advantage of life before it spoils, so much he may by his Labour fix a property in: whatever is be- yond this, is more than his share, and belongs to others. Nothing was made by God for man to spoil or destroy. And thus, considering the plenty of natural provisions there was a long time in the world, and the few spenders; and to how small a part of that provision the industry of one man could extend itself, and ingross it to the prejudice of others; especially keeping within the bounds, set by reason, of what might serve for his use; there could be then little room for quarrels or contentions about property so established" (§31).


7. "But the chief matter of property being now not the fruits of the earth, and the


beasts that subsist on it, but the earth itself; as that which takes in and carries with it all the rest; I think it is plain, that property in that too is acquired as the former. As much land as a man tills, plants, improves, cultivates, and can use the product of, so much is his property. He by his labour does, as it were, inclose it from the common. Nor will it invalidate his right, to say everybody else has an equal title to it; and therefore he cannot appropriate, he cannot inclose, without the consent of all his fellow-commoners, all mankind. God, when he gave the world in common to all mankind, commanded man also to labour, and the penury of his condition required it of him. God and his reason commanded him to subdue the earth, i.e. improve it for the benefit of life, and therein lay out something upon it that was his own, his labour. He that in obedience to this command of God, subdued, tilled and sowed any part of it, thereby annexed to it something that was his property, which another had no title to, nor could without injury take from him" (§32).


*...it is plain that men have agreed to a disproportionate to a and unequal possession of the earth, they having by a tacit and voluntary consent, found out a way how a man may fairly possess more land than he himself can use the product of, by receiving in exchange for the overplus gold and silver, which may be hoarded up without in- jury to anyone... This partage of things in an inequality of private possessions, men have made practicable out of the bounds of society, and without compact, only by putting a value on gold and silver, and tacitly agreeing in the use of money: for in governments, the laws regulate the right of property..." (§50).


9. "If man in the state of nature be so free, if he be absolute lord of his own person and possessions, equal to the greatest, and subject to no body, why will he part with his freedom? To which it is obvious to answer, that though in the state of nature he hath such a right, yet the enjoyment of it is very uncertain, and constantly exposed to the invasion of others: for all being kings as much as he, every man his equal, and the greater part no strict observers of equity and justice, the enjoyment of the property he has in this state is very unsafe, very unsecure. This makes him willing to quit a condition, which, however free, is full of fears and continual dangers: and it is not without reason, that he seeks out, and is willing to join in society with oth- ers, for the mutual preservation of their lives, liberties and estates, which I call by the general name property" ($123).


10. "The great chief end, therefore, of men's uniting into commonwealths, and putting themselves under government, is the preservation of their property" (§124).

Summary of John Locke's Life and Ideas

Background

  • Birth and Education: John Locke was born in Somerset, England, and educated at prestigious institutions, including Oxford, where he studied philosophy and medicine. He later taught at Oxford from ages 20 to 34.

  • Historical Context: Locke's writings emerged during a tumultuous period in Europe marked by the Reformation and the violent conflicts known as the "religious wars," which included the Thirty Years War. This era saw the decline of the Catholic Church's authority and the rise of nation-states, necessitating new governmental frameworks.

Views on Government

  • Divine Right of Kings: Locke opposed the notion that monarchs ruled by divine right, as articulated by Robert Filmer, who equated the monarch's will with law.

  • Social Contract: In his Second Treatise of Government, Locke proposed that individuals form societies and governments to protect their rights and property. He emphasized the importance of the rule of law over absolute monarchy.

Key Concepts in Locke's Philosophy

  1. State of Nature: Locke described the state of nature as a condition of perfect freedom and equality, governed by natural law, which obliges individuals to respect each other's rights.

  2. Liberty vs. License: He distinguished between liberty (the right to act freely within the bounds of natural law) and license (the freedom to act without regard for others).

  3. Formation of Society: Locke argued that people unite to form governments for the mutual preservation of their lives, liberties, and property.

  4. Property Rights: He believed that property is justified through labor; individuals gain ownership by mixing their labor with natural resources.

  5. Inequality: Locke acknowledged that economic inequality arises from property ownership but argued that it is justified as long as it does not harm others or exceed what one can use.

  6. Means of Acquiring Property: He contended that property can be acquired peacefully through labor, not through violence.

Controversies

  • Contradictions: Locke's legacy is complex; while he advocated for individual rights and opposed tyranny, he was also involved in the British slave trade and defended the rights of property owners over the disenfranchised.

Conclusion

Locke's Second Treatise of Government remains influential, particularly in discussions about individual rights, the role of government, and the justification of property ownership

  1. How does Locke describe the state of nature?

  2. What is the difference between license and liberty?

  3. What reasons does Locke give for the formation of society and government?

  4. What does he think the pursuits are that government should protect?

  5. What does Locke think justifies private ownership or property?

  6. What does he think counts as property?

  7. Discuss his feelings on religion based on Genesis 1 & 2.

Answers to Questions on John Locke's Philosophy

  1. State of Nature: Locke describes the state of nature as a condition of perfect freedom and equality, governed by natural law, which obliges individuals to respect each other's rights.

  2. License vs. Liberty: Liberty is the right to act freely within the bounds of natural law, while license is the freedom to act without regard for others.

  3. Formation of Society and Government: Locke argues that individuals form societies and governments for the mutual preservation of their lives, liberties, and property.

  4. Pursuits Government Should Protect: The government should protect individuals' lives, liberties, and property, which Locke collectively refers to as property.

  5. Justification of Private Ownership: Locke believes private ownership is justified through labor; individuals gain ownership by mixing their labor with natural resources.

  6. What Counts as Property: Property includes anything that an individual has mixed their labor with, such as land or resources removed from their natural state.

  7. Feelings on Religion (Genesis): Locke's views on religion suggest a parallel between the state of nature and the biblical narrative, highlighting themes of freedom, disobedience, and the resulting conflicts in human relationships.