1 / 42

John Locke

John Locke. Second Treatise on Government. Locke’s Second Treatise. I. Biographical/Historical Background II. State of Nature One III. Freedom, Liberty, and License IV. Property and Labor. I. Historical Background. John Locke (1632 – 1704) Enters Oxford in 1651

aya
Télécharger la présentation

John Locke

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. John Locke Second Treatise on Government

  2. Locke’s Second Treatise I. Biographical/Historical Background II. State of Nature One III. Freedom, Liberty, and License IV. Property and Labor

  3. I. Historical Background • John Locke (1632 – 1704) • Enters Oxford in 1651 • Studies philosophy, natural history, medicine • Becomes physician and advisor to First Earl of Shaftesbury (big Whig politician) • Reign of Charles II, Charles dies in 1685

  4. I. Historical Background • Line of succession issue (Catholic vs. Protestant) • Locke – through Shaftesbury – gets implicated in plot to assassinate James • Leaves England for Holland in 1683 • Begins to write anonymous political pamphlets, including the Two Treatises on Government (1689)

  5. I. Historical Background • 1688 “Glorious Revolution” in England • Replace the Catholic line from James with William and Mary (both Protestant) • Locke was an advisor to William while the two of them were in Holland together • In exchange for throne, William & Mary agreed to a more limited, constitutional monarchy • Signed “Toleration Act” which allowed for religious toleration for most faiths (except Catholicism and Unitarianism)

  6. I. Historical Background • Locke lives out his days on government pension … without further ado, Locke’s Second Treatise

  7. II. State of Nature 1 • Locke begins Chapter 2: • “To understand political power right, and derive it from its original, me must consider what state all men are naturally in…” • What we need to know, then, is the natural condition of mankind

  8. II. State of Nature 1 • Continuing with the quote from the opening of Chapter 2 • “… 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.” • What does that mean?

  9. II. State of Nature 1 • Individuals living in state of nature • Also seems we need to know 3 things: • Freedom • Law of nature • Property Rights

  10. III. Freedom, Liberty, License • Two senses of freedom at work here • Free from any social bonds, which means • Not dependent on the will of any other people • I can do “X” without asking someone else’s approval to do “X” • Bear in mind, he is saying that this freedom is natural; that we naturally are free from any social constraints or relations • Note: to this point in human history, very few people could be said to enjoy freedom in this sense

  11. III. Freedom, Liberty, License • But it’s not just any freedom, rather it’s freedom in accord with “the law of nature” • And that law is: • “The state of Nature has a law of Nature to govern it, which obliges every one: and reason, which is that law, teaches all mankind, who will but consult it, that being all equal and independent, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty, or possessions” (chp.2, par 6).

  12. III. Freedom, Liberty, License • We get 2 arguments to support this view: • Religious • Each of us is created in God’s image • We don’t have the right to destroy ourselves (as we are God’s creatures), so we can’t have the right to destroy others like us • Secular • “equal and independent” phrase • Moral sympathy and rationality

  13. III. Freedom, Liberty, License • Summary • In state of nature we have freedom, which is life in accordance with the law of nature • Distinction between liberty and license • For Locke, liberty is not the right to do everything, but rather to do anything in accordance with the law of nature

  14. III. Freedom, Liberty, License • But…How can I be free if I must obey a law? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?

  15. III. Freedom, Liberty, License • Drug addict example • Do I want to be the kind of person who smokes crack? • Do I want to smoke crack now? Or now? Or.. • Only the first person is truly free • Freer in that life is more fully an expression of your own will • When following the laws of nature, you are following the dictates of your own reason and nothing else

  16. III. Freedom, Liberty, License • In other words, freedom does not mean war… it means peace! • Think of interpersonal interaction … do we need a sovereign to tell us what is right?

  17. III. Freedom, Liberty, License • So for Locke, state of nature is when we are all free, indeed it is a state of perfect freedom • Also a state of equality, since no one is forced to submit to any authority higher than the dictates of her own reason

  18. III. Freedom, Liberty, License • Chapter 2 “A state also of equality, wherein all the power and jurisdiction is reciprocal, no one having more than another: there being nothing more evident, than that creatures of the same species and rank promiscuously born to all the same advantages of Nature, and the use of the same faculties, should also be equal one amongst another without subordination or subjection, unless the Lord and Master of them all, should by any manifest declaration of his will set one above another, and confer on him by an evident and clear appointment an undoubted right to dominion and sovereignty.”

  19. III. Freedom, Liberty, License • For Hobbes, freedom and equality were in large measure responsible for the state of nature being a war of all against all • For Locke, freedom and equality lead to a radically different situation

  20. III. Freedom, Liberty, License “Men living together according to reason, without a common superior on Earth, with authority to judge between them, is properly the state of Nature” (chp. 3, par. 19).

  21. III. Freedom, Liberty, License • Which raises the question of why we would ever leave the state of nature? Why not anarchy? • Do we find any problems lurking in the state of nature????

  22. IV. Property & Labor • Source of Private Property?

  23. IV. Property & Labor • 2 Caveats though: • no spoilage • must leave as good in kind for others to appropriate • that is, after you take your share, there’s still enough left for others to take their share

  24. V. State of Nature 2 • Add money economy • Effect on our relations?

  25. Wealth Inequality in the State of Nature I A B C D Individuals

  26. Wealth Inequality in the State of Nature I Rough Equality A B C D Individuals (chp. 5,par. 37; par 41)

  27. Wealth Inequality in the State of Nature 2 After the introduction of a money economy, inequality becomes much more extreme A B C D Individuals

  28. Wealth Inequality in the State of Nature 2 After the introduction of a money economy, inequality becomes much more extreme A B C D But everyone is better off (chp. 5, par. 47) Individuals

  29. VI. Mutual Advantage & the Social Contract • If we have social relations... • And we have economic relations... • Why do we need political relations? • Why won’t people be able to get along? • Why do we need politics?

  30. Don’t Cooperate Cooperate 3 , 3 1 , 4 Don’t Cooperate Cooperate 4 , 1 2 , 2 Prisoners’ Dilemma

  31. VII. Prisoners’ Dilemma • Symbolic Form: • We’re in a Prisoner’s Dilemma situation whenever: T > R > P > S Temptation to defect > Rewards of Cooperation Rewards > Punishment for Not Cooperating Punishment > Sucker’s Payoff

  32. VII. Prisoners’ Dilemma • Note that even if we start at the cooperative outcome, that outcome is not stable • Each player can improve his/her position by adopting a different strategy • 4 = best option (Temptation) • 3 = 2nd best option (Reward) • 2 = 2nd worst option (Punishment) • 1 = worst option (Sucker

  33. Don’t Cooperate Cooperate 3 , 3 1 , 4 Don’t Cooperate Cooperate 4 , 1 2 , 2 Prisoners’ Dilemma

  34. VII. Prisoners’ Dilemma • But since both players have changed strategy we end up at the non-cooperative outcome, where both players are worse off than if they had chosen to cooperate

  35. Don’t Cooperate Cooperate 3 , 3 1 , 4 Don’t Cooperate Cooperate 4 , 1 2 , 2 Prisoners’ Dilemma

  36. VII. Prisoners’ Dilemma • And, as we noted, this non-cooperative outcome is also a Nash equilibrium outcome • Neither player has any incentive to change strategy since whoever changes will do immediately worse by making the move

  37. Don’t Cooperate Cooperate 3 , 3 1 , 4 Don’t Cooperate Cooperate 4 , 1 2 , 2 Prisoners’ Dilemma

  38. VIII. Mutual Advantage and the Social Contract • Prevent defections and allow for cooperative behavior • What kind of political life? • Need to insure that everyone agrees to terms of contract • What sort of terms would arise?

  39. Sovereign We the People

  40. Sovereign Reciprocal Obligations We the People

  41. Sovereign The Social Contract Binds the Sovereign and the People We the People

  42. VIII. Mutual Advantage and the Social Contract • Locke’s Social Contract then includes: • Rights to protect us against the government • Popular sovereignty • Legislative power supreme (rather than the executive as in a monarchy) • Basis for this -- fundamental equality of all human beings

More Related