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History and Evolution:
By William E. Steinman:
Part 122, John Lock Part Two:
July 25, 2005:
In 1683 John Locke moved from England to Holland as he feared
a witch hunt when James II came to power. Locke's opposition to
the ascension of James almost assured that he would be on the
hit list. So Holland offered a much more healthy climate. Locke
made some friends in Amsterdam including the theologian Philip
van Limborch.
In that friendly company, he managed to take time out to think
through his philosophy.
It was well he was in Amsterdam for back in England things went the way he had expected. Charles II took away his studentship at Christ Church in 1686 and put his name of the hit list of folks wanted by the English for treason. Although the list was sent to the Hague, nothing came of it. Locke prudently hid out for a while, but it proved unnecessary. No one in the Netherlands was ready to cooperate with England. Later Locke was able to move about Holland without fear.
Holland was good for his health and he remained there while
things went downhill in England. James II came to power when Charles
died in 1685 and lasted until 1688 when William of Orange overthrew
him. Thus, in 1689 Locke returned to England on the winning side.
Once there, he took memberships on various commissions. He finally
left London in 1691 and retired to Essex when his asthma acted
up again. There he spent his remaining years. However, he was
not out of it. He remained the intellectual leader of the Whigs
and had considerable influence on the activities of
Parliament. He was a key advisor to John Somers who became lord
chancellor.
After all of the hassle and struggle, Locke and Shaftesbury saw the fruition of their work in the so called Glorious Revolution. The most important of these reforms was the emergence of the constitutional monarchy in England. What this means is, the power of the king was greatly restricted to those granted under the constitution and the prevailing laws of the land. There would be no more capricious royal activities. Parliament was firmly in control. In addition, reform in the courts moved rapidly ahead and the roots of religious tolerance were established. Freedom of thought and expression were reenforced with the repeal of the restrictive Act for the Regulation of Printing. The act was abolished in 1695.
Sadly enough, these reforms did not extend to the English colonies. For all practical purposes, the colonies were still under the arbitrary control of the king and his privy council. In fact, the crown and the merchants of England saw the colonies as nothing more than resources to be exploited. There was no tendency toward expansion of power and empire at the time. Had it been otherwise, England might indeed have become the first, perhaps the only, superpower of the world. Looking at the facts objectively, there can be no doubt that most of the colonists would have preferred to remain Englishmen and loyal subject of the crown. It was nothing more than lack of foresight coupled with the bad behavior of the crown that caused the American revolution.
As to Locke's philosophy, his final years were his most fruitful. His "Letter Concerning Toleration" was published in 1689. In 1689 he also produced "An Essay Concerning Human Understanding". His "Two treatises on Government" were published later in 1690. In fact, he continued to work and write up until his death, producing may letters and pamphlets.
In all of his work. Locke expressed his philosophy of empiricism. In that, the truth of the universe could only be discerned through the experience of the senses. Knowledge did not begin in some kind of innate knowledge of general principles or any path of reasoning from general principles. Truth comes from sense perception and reflection on that perception.
From our standpoint his most important work was his political philosophy which he eloquently expressed in the "Two Treatises of Government." In the first Treatise he presented a sound refutation of Sir Robert Filmer's "Patriarcha." Filmer's work was the classic and perhaps the strongest defense of the divine right of kings. Of course that notion is based in nonsense and Locke had no problem revealing that. In the second treatise, Locke gets down to business and refutes the absolutist theory of government. In that we find the justification for the American revolution. In short, the people always have the right to withdraw their support and overthrow the government if it fails to fulfill their trust.
Political power, he points out is the right to make laws, exact penalties for violations, provide for the defense of the commonwealth from outside forces, and take such actions that are generally for the public good. Therefore, government is a trust and can be forfeited by a ruler who fails to secure the public good. The ruler's authority is conditional rather than absolute. In addition, when a citizen enters into a civil contract for a commonwealth, he does not forfeit all of his rights. He retains the right to personal property and the product of his own labor. Furthermore, the ruler has the duty to protect the citizens personal property. The citizen also has the right to freedom of thought, speech, and worship. Locke goes on to define a government of two branches, these being the executive or monarch in his case, and the legislative selected by election. He also makes the case for the separation of powers in these branches of government.
Reading through Locke's work, it is not difficult to see it
as the model for many of the documents which were produce by the
founders of America. For sure, these include the Declaration of
Independence, remember?
"WE hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are
created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain
unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the
Pursuit of Happiness -- That to secure these Rights, Governments
are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the
Consent of the Governed, that whenever any Form of Government
becomes destructive of these Ends, it is the Right of the People
to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying
its Foundation on such Principles, and organizing its Powers in
such Form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety
and Happiness."
In addition, we can see that much of our constitution is a
reflection of the thinking of this great man. We can cite the
separation of church and state, much of the bill of rights, and
the separation of powers in the branches of government. It is
not difficult at all to make the case for Locke being one of the
most important contributors in the evolution of democracy.
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