Locke: Ethics

John Locke (1632 – 1704) is one of the thinkers of Enlightenment philosophy. His moral views are a reflection of the natural understanding of religion formed by the Enlightenment philosophy. The purpose of natural religion is to build a religion that is separate from the traditional view and historical religious understanding. Advocates of this view necessarily base the existence of God and adopt a deist view. Locke advocated a similar idea, and because he was an empiricist thinker, he wanted to (...) base his understanding of morality and God, which he emphasized in nature. He thinks there is a law in nature. This law of nature can be discovered with the light of nature, man can live ethically by reaching this law and reach the existence of God. But Locke cannot explain and obscure what he means here with the light of nature in his Essays on the Law of Nature. This natural light is sometimes an innate ability, sometimes mind, and sometimes sensory data. Sometimes he thinks of these three as complementary elements. After all, the combination of these three is known as the law of nature, and people have to comply with the moral principles that are necessarily caused by the knowledge of the law of nature. In this sense, Locke, who also restricts human liberty, reaches a deterministic understanding of morality, human and existence depending on nature. Emile Boutroux (d. 1921) criticized this determinist view. (shrink)

JohnLocke’s 1700–1702 correspondencewith Dutch Arminian Philippus van Limborch has been taken by commentators as the motivation for modifications to the fifth edition of “Of Power,” the chapter in An Essay Concerning Human Understanding that treats freedom. In this paper, I offer the first systematic and chronological study of their correspondence. I argue that the heart of their disagreement is over how they define “freedom of indifference.” Once the importance of the disagreement over indifference is established, it is clear that when (...) Locke altered parts of “Of Power” as a reaction to Limborch’s questioning, he did so in the interest of further clarifying and solidifying his view, not changing it. Seeing how they disagree over indifference also allows us to see the correspondence as showcasing the conflict between intellectualism, the view that cognitive states determine the will, and voluntarism, the view that the will alone determines action. (shrink)

Although excluded from the standard account of the history of philosophy, Catharine Trotter Cockburn avoided the 17th-century bias against female intellectual skills and was an active contributor to the early modern philosophical discourse. In her Defence of Mr. Locke’s Essay, she defended Locke from several criticisms by Thomas Burnet. By analysing three of Burnet’s main arguments, such as the theory of natural conscience, his anti-voluntarism, and his belief in the immateriality of the soul, Trotter showed that he often misinterpreted John (...) Locke’s principles, especially those concerning his moral epistemology. Moreover, beyond her apologetic aim, she also presented her own moral philosophy, arguing that the true ground of morality is the rational and social nature of human beings. Although Trotter was clearly inspired by John Locke, her Defence was not simply a vindication, and she was not his mere handmaiden, for her thought was original and independent in many respects. (shrink)

This Article shows how three modern English thinkers — Hobbes, Locke and Bentham — construe the law as an intersection of secular eternity on the one one hand and transience in modernity on the other, allowing for immovability and movement at the same time, combining stability with change. It details how these theorists, who undoubtedly have earned themselves places of honor in the canon of modern political thought, tried to solve the problem of self-grounding in three different and yet paradigmatically (...) modern ways, each of them intertwining law and time in a different fashion, and each of them connecting both law and temporality to happiness. Thus this Article shows not only that these three British thinkers claim in one way or another that while natural desires may provide pleasure, only the law can bring happiness, but also emphasizes that, in their view, the transformation of the former into the latter entails a transformation of temporal consciousness. Thereby this Article foregrounds two elements that are crucial to an understanding of how seventeenth and eighteenth century British thinkers envisaged the transformation of pleasure into happiness by means of the law: first, the notion that the law creates or reinforces duration in social life, and second, the idea that the law can harness the immediacy of desires by assuring the legal protection of enduring pleasures, which lead to happiness. (shrink)

This study provides a comprehensive reinterpretation of the meaning of Locke's political thought. John Dunn restores Locke's ideas to their exact context, and so stresses the historical question of what Locke in the Two Treatises of Government was intending to claim. By adopting this approach, he reveals the predominantly theological character of all Locke's thinking about politics and provides a convincing analysis of the development of Locke's thought. In a polemical concluding section, John Dunn argues that liberal and Marxist interpretations (...) of Locke's politics have failed to grasp his meaning. Locke emerges as not merely a contributor to the development of English constitutional thought, or as a reflector of socio-economic change in seventeenth-century England, but as essentially a Calvinist natural theologian. (shrink)

John Locke’s Some Thoughts Concerning Education emphasizes the need to develop the habit of rationally judging which desires should be fulfilled. While nurture plays an essential role in this development, nature provides the fundamental desire for self-preservation, the end in light of which reason makes its judgments. The significance of this natural element in Lockean virtue has generally been overlooked, but it becomes clear through a comparison to Aristotelian virtue. Locke rejects any virtue that would require changing our most basic (...) desires, and he does so as part of his rejection of a political order designed for such education. Locke’s account of education is not purely transformative; rather, it is intended to prevent the transformation that would be part of an Aristotelian moral education. (shrink)

In this book Nicholas Wolterstorff, a well-known proponent of “Reformed epistemology,” sets out to investigate the modern origins of the evidentialist and foundationalist tradition that he opposes. He locates these origins in book 4 of Locke’s Essay Concerning Human Understanding. Wolterstorff tells us that he had to overcome strong prejudices in writing the book, for “in the philosophical world I inhabit, Locke has the reputation of being boringly chatty and philosophically careless”. He suggests that the earlier parts of the Essay (...) deserve that reputation, but says that while reading book 4 he felt himself to be “present at the making of the modern mind”. To Wolterstorff’s credit, he seems to have vanquished some of his prejudices, for this book offers careful and charitable readings of many important strands in Locke’s epistemology. (shrink)

according to some interpreters of John Locke’s moral philosophy, there is an inconsistency between Locke’s adoption of hedonism and his commitment to a natural law view of ethics. Indeed, Locke is not fully explicit about the relationship between pleasure and pain and the natural law in the Essay concerning Human Understanding. But the thesis I defend in this paper is that the idea of convenientia, according to which God harmonizes the natural law with human nature, can be used to understand (...) how Locke synthesizes the hedonism he adopts in the 1670s, and ultimately expresses in Book II, chapter 20 of the Essay, with the natural law doctrine he maintains over the course of his lifetime. As I argue, God’s providential.. (shrink)

Dept. of Philosophy. Paper copy at Leddy Library: Theses & Major Papers - Basement, West Bldg. / Call Number: Thesis1988.F354. Source: Masterss International, Volume: 40-07, page:. Thesis --University of Windsor, 1988.

This dissertation argues that Locke's ethics can best be understood as an integration of the elements of happiness, virtue and divine command. Drawing on the writings of Richard Ashcraft, John Dunn and Richard Mouw, its thesis is that Locke's ethics is based on his Christian faith. The dissertation begins by examining Locke's use of scripture in developing his doctrinal views. The following chapters use Locke's theology to demonstrate that for Locke ethics are theological and not merely philosophical. Therefore, true happiness (...) for Locke is found only in heaven; all earthly pleasures fall short of true happiness. Happiness includes pleasure, but is not synonymous with pleasure. Virtue requires training and education. John Passmore and Alex Neill's writings are used to show that Locke's idea of training requires more than merely reasoning well and more than an attempt to gain a good reputation. Virtue is obedience to the law of God which requires both training and the assistance of the Holy Spirit. The commands of God are good because they fit creation. As the greatest reasoning being God's will is constrained to choose reason even though God himself is a free being. Locke's ethical theory is an attempt to draw together elements of human psychology and the biblical presentation of an omnipotent God. (shrink)

Natural law to the concept of moral philosophy in the West and legal theory. The ancient Greek orator raised nomos concept, used in reference to the community about . The Stoic school is the first to propose the concept of natural law, as a rule show a rational universe. Needless to say, natural law philosophy in the West have become social justice, moral and ethical standards of regulation. The Middle Ages, the concept of natural law and Christian theology combined into (...) the God-given light of human reason, is derived from out the universal laws of human nature. Modern Western political philosophy, the cause of germination, the natural law and natural rights , the social contract and other theories combined, become an important modern democratic political theory. Which Locke theory of natural law, not only inherited the tradition of philosophy, on the experience on the position to give a new interpretation of modern democratic political theory has a unique contribution. In this paper, the historical evolution of natural law that background, the natural law according to the papers early Locke, Essays on The Law Nature , in-depth study of its doctrines, its understanding of Locke's natural law theory and the characteristics of moral philosophy and politics in theoretical contribution. The concept of natural law has long been regarded as the foundation of moral and legal principles in Western philosophical thought. As early as in the ancient Greece the idea of ​​nomos or law, which indicates the social conventions formed according to the agreement made by social members , was proposed by the Sophists. But the concept of nomos only appeals to social and man-made law s and is in opposition to the concept of "nature" or physis. It was the Stoic who first introduced the concept of "natural law" as necessary principle of nature exhibiting cosmic reason and made it the foundation of social justice and morality. And ever since then, there is natural law moral theory. In the Medieval Ages, natural law moral theory became closely associated with Christian theology. According to Aquinas , moral law is derived from the rational nature of human being which is endowed by God. Till the dawn of modern times, the doctrine of natural law was adopted by political philosophers, such as Thomas Hobbes and John Locke, as the guarantee of natural right and the foundation of civil government and social contract, it then became the cornerstone of modem political theory of democracy. The present paper is attempt to investigate the doctrine of natural law in Locke's early philosophical work, Essays on The Law of Nature, that provided an empiricist version for our knowledge of the law of nature. (shrink)

This dissertation aims at clarifying Locke's intention and achievement in the area of ethics and natural law as found in the Essay and the Two Treatises, with an emphasis on the Essay. The two works are studied as complementary in their scope and achievement. The Two Treatises fails to establish the ontological and epistemological foundation for natural law. The Essay provides that foundation. Yet although the Essay establishes criteria for a rational moral law, it fails to follow through systematically the (...) leads provided. The Two Treatises may then be read as a completion of the work of the Essay. ;The dissertation begins with an exploration of the controversy over innate ideas as it pertains to the problem of natural law. In light of Locke's remarks that moral law must serve as a restraint of natural passion, the concepts of power, person, and happiness are explained. A careful analysis is made of his identification of natural law with the divine law. The strict conditions set for knowledge of divine law, e.g., personal immortality and the attributes of God, render a rational knowledge of natural law qua divine law impossible. ;Consideration is then given to the reasons why Locke thought it possible and desirable to demonstrate morality with the certainty of mathematics. The great gap between the promise and the performance of demonstration leads to a discussion of the various interpretations of Locke. Through a consideration of the aim and style of the Essay some guidelines for interpretation are established, in light of which it is shown that the Essay contains a new secular utilitarian morality. ;Finally, the natural law doctrine of the Two Treatises is examined and related to the Essay. The "workmanship" model is shown to be superfluous in light of the more solid foundation for natural rights in the desire for comfortable self-preservation. The "Second Treatise" is shown to be a work that provides a demonstration of morality, thereby fulfilling the deepest ethical aims of the Essay. (shrink)

How can it be that John Locke and David Hume, two of the greatest advocates of modern political, economic, and social arrangements, disagree about so many fundamental things? Whereas Locke provides a rights-based account of modern society, Hume is famous for criticizing Locke's social contract theory and Locke's doctrine of the right to revolution. Much like many contemporary critics who see problems in the "atomistic" individualism of contemporary rights-based liberalism, Hume is dissatisfied with the account of liberty, reason, and the (...) person underlying Locke's defense of modern society. On more purely philosophic matters, Hume worries that Locke has failed to provide an adequate account of human perception and causation. ;This project attempts to come to grips with the deep significance of these political and philosophic differences. Locke, in Hume's judgment, misconceives the relationship between human reason and common sense. Hume argues that Locke's political and philosophic teaching is the product of the poetic imagination, that it is based on creativity rather than sound reasoning. As a replacement for Locke's rights-based way of thinking about modern life, Hume offers a moral defense of modern commercial society. The Moral Sciences of John Locke and David Hume attempts to deepen contemporary worries about the liberal self-understanding, while offering a different way of conceiving of modern commercial society. Its primary contribution lies in seeing Hume's positive account of our "mixed kind of life" as the key to offering a moderate account of human reason and of modern society. (shrink)

The aim this dissertation is to reintroduce the historically accurate thought of John Locke into the discourse of political theory in a way that shows his continuing relevance to politics in our own time. Locke confronted a social problem very similar to our own: the emergence of deep social divisions over ultimate belief, such that politics could no longer be based on the worldview of a single cultural group. But Locke rejects political neutralism, the solution many liberal theorists are pursuing (...) today. Instead, he develops a method this dissertation calls "moral consensus." Locke builds a political system on rational moral principles that all cultural groups can accept. He shows that some religious moral laws are very certain while others are uncertain, and builds a political theory on the most certain laws. Opposing religious groups can thus be unified by a moral code composed of rationally certain moral laws they all agree on. ;Locke achieves moral consensus through epistemological, theological, and political analysis. This is a goal that runs throughout and unifies his major works. In epistemology, Locke shows each denomination that it cannot be sure it has possession of the one true set of religious beliefs. In theology, he argues that morality must be based on divine command, and that some divine commands are more certain than others. In politics, Locke argues that political community ought to be based on moral beliefs which are both very certain and very clearly within government's sphere of competence. The moral law that passes these tests is the command to preserve human life. Because it is confirmed by examination of divine handiwork in the construction of human nature, this law is shared by members of all faiths and can serve to unify a political community. (shrink)

This dissertation examines Locke's influence on moralists of the eighteenth century. I will show how Locke's moral theory and the problems it raises set the tenor of moral discussion for subsequent theorists. My analysis does not rely upon proving explicit and direct influences of Locke on the theorists I examine. Rather, I want to show that Locke's influence was more general and systemic than would be revealed through the search for explicit debts and appropriations. Locke's attempt to produce a moral (...) epistemology took for granted the assumptions of a traditional realist and rationalist natural law theory. In Locke we find an early and quite unique attempt to work out an epistemology of natural law that assumes neither innatism nor Hobbism. Locke endeavoured to find an account of natural law consistent with his own anti-innatist empiricism that might still support a realist conception of moral law. With this aim, he established the terms of moral theorizing for subsequent eighteenth century thinkers. As I will show, Locke's moral epistemology fails to fully cohere the presuppositions of his own realism and his commitment to natural law. In subsequent thinkers, we see attempts to solve this problem while maintaining Locke's basic moral assumptions. I look specifically at the works of Samuel Clarke, Francis Hutcheson, and Catharine Trotter Cockburn. What unites these theorists are the broad goals of establishing morality upon necessary and universal laws and of developing moral epistemologies that avoid both moral innatism and Hobbesian constructivism. More specifically, each is working to establish an epistemology that makes moral laws intuitively certain while maintaining a metaphysics of morality that relates moral law to the general teleological order of the universe. Despite the specific differences in their views, they can all seen to be working within a broadly Lockean frame of reference. (shrink)

_The Science of Modern Virtue_ examines the influence that the philosopher Rene Descartes, the political theorist John Locke, and the biologist Charles Darwin have had on our modern understanding of human beings and human virtue. Written by leading thinkers from a variety of fields, the volume is a study of the complex relation between modern science and modern virtue, between a kind of modern thought and a kind of modern action. Offering more than a series of substantive introductions to Descartes’, (...) Locke’s, and Darwin’s accounts of who we are and the kind of virtue to which we can aspire, the book invites readers to think about the ways in which the writings of these seminal thinkers shaped the democratic and technological world in which modern human beings live. Thirteen scholars in this volume learnedly explore questions drawn from the diverse disciplines of political science, philosophy, theology, biology, and metaphysics. Let the reader be warned: The authors of these essays are anything but consensual in their analysis. Considered together, the chapters in this volume carry on a lively internal debate that mirrors theoretical modernity’s ongoing discussion about the true nature of human beings and the science of virtue. Some authors powerfully argue that Locke’s and Darwin’s thought is amenable to the claims made about human beings and human virtue by classical philosophers such as Aristotle and classical Christian theologians such as Thomas Aquinas. Others make the opposite case, drawing attention to the ways in which Descartes, Locke, and Darwin knowingly and dialectically depart from central teachings of both classical philosophy and classical Christian theology. (shrink)