State of Nature. A State of War?

Today's History and Context lecture again looked at aspects of Bertrand Russell's History of Western Philosophy, particularly Locke, his theory of knowledge and his political philosophy. John Locke (1632-1704) lived a relatively long life, but main body of his influential works were published between 1687-1693. He was an apostle of the 1688 revolution and his father fought for Parliament during the English civil war. Russel considers Locke to be "the luckiest of all philosophers" because he completed his work in theoretical philosophy just as men came to power who shared his political opinions. It wasn't until after the revolution that he was able to take any part in English politics, and up until 1688 he spent his time composing his Essay Concerning Human Understanding.

Unlike Descartes, Locke believed that we are born with no innate thoughts - that everything we know is learnt. He suggested that all we have is the ability to reason. Nothing is built in, but what we do have is the capacity to learn. His religion played a massive role in his philosophies. He was a devout Christian and believed that much of what we know can come directly from God through revelation. Despite this he still chooses to analyse professed revelations with rational safeguards. - "Revelation must be judged by reason."

John Locke published his political philosophy in his two Treatises of Government. In the second, and most politically important of these treatises, Locke discussed his idea of the state of nature, and natural law. The state of the nature had already been considered by another highly regarded philosopher - Hobbes. They both gave their very different view of a world "antecedent to all human government". Hobbes believed that the people's dominant passions are aggressive - that without a hierarchical social system and defined rulers that humans would resort to violence and aggression to achieve personal gain. This meant that we needed strong rulers sent by God in order to save mankind from a state of constant war; an idea that matches with the Catholic belief in the Divine Right of Kings. John Locke was strongly opposed to this. He believed that in a state of nature, man would enjoy natural freedom and revert to natural law. That we already have a sense of what is right and what is wrong and would apply these moral senses were we given the chance.

Based on this, Locke proposed his Manual for a Revolution - a new concept of government. This hypothetical new government would have very limited powers, primarily to protect property. This would mean taxes could not be levied without the people's consent. Locke also believed that in this new system, people would have the natural right of revolution and would have the support to revolt if they believed that government weren't obeying natural law. Despite the hypothetical nature of this proposal, many of his theories regarding natural law and the natural right of revolution were used in the American Constitution almost a century after Locke had died.