Locke (The Routledge Philosophers) by E.J. Lowe

The Routledge Philosophers

by E.J. Lowe

John Locke (1632-1704) was one of the towering philosophers of the Enlightenment and arguably the greatest English philosopher. Many assumptions we now take for granted, about liberty, knowledge and government, come from Locke and his most influential works, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding and Two Treatises of Government .

In this superb introduction to Locke's thought, E.J. Lowe covers all the major aspects of his philosophy. Whilst sensitive to the seventeenth-century background to Locke's thought, he concentrates on introducing and assessing Locke in a contemporary philosophical setting, explaining why he is so important today.

Beginning with a helpful overview of Locke's life and times, he explains how Locke challenged the idea that the human mind and knowledge of the external world rested on innate principles, laying the philosophical foundations of empiricism later taken up by Berkeley and Hume.

Subsequent chapters introduce and critically assess topics fundamental to understanding his theories of substance and identity, language and meaning, philosophy of action and free will, and political freedom and toleration. In doing so, he explains some of the more complex yet pivotal aspects of Locke's thought, such as his theory that language rests on ideas and how Locke's theory of personal identity paved the way for modern empirical psychology. A final chapter assesses Locke's legacy, and the book includes a helpful chronology of Locke's life and glossary of unfamiliar terms.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction

Paperback Bunko

First published April 10, 2002

Reviews

[Molsa Roja(s) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Crec que es pot treure molt i molt més de Locke: és d’aquells llibres que, per desgràcia, fan del filòsof un mer objecte d’estudi i no un pensament viu, que et permeten de veure de nou la infinita tristesa d’un academicisme excessiu tant proper a la tradició religiosa del comentari —incapaç de crear res, obligada a recrear-se en els escrits dels altres, cercant nimietats. En fi, que és preferible llegir a Locke —com, sortosament, ja havia fet— que llegir què es diu sobre Locke, degut a la manca d’entusiasme de Lowe. Especialment dur el capitol sobre la seva epistemologia, desdoblada, aparcada per a explicar-nos una sèrie de debats contemporanis que no tenen, de facto, cap rellevància, que només van dirigits a l’autoreproducció del món acadèmic.

[A. B. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Concise and informative.

Locke's epistemology is rather interesting; especially as a historical tool to brush away the cobwebs of 'divinely implanted innate ideas'. His ideational theory of language as describing thought through convention, conception of agent-causation as preserving a compatibilist free will likewise.

And of course, his political doctrine has had a huge impact on our modern liberal democracies, as has his labour theory of value too. His social contract as the golden mean between the extremes of Hobbes and Rousseau is also compelling.

Will probably read a bit more of him. Not that prepossessing a thinker for me, but of definite historical significance.