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An Essay Concerning Human Understanding/Second Treatise of Goverment
Notes and Introduction by Mark G. Spencer, Brock University, Ontario
John Locke (1632-1704) was perhaps the most influential English writer of his time. His Essay concerning Human Understanding (1690) and Two Treatises of Government (1690) weighed heavily on the history of ideas in the eighteenth century, and Locke's works are often - rightly - presented as foundations of the Age of Enlightenment. Both the Essay and the Second Treatise (by far the more influential of the Two Treatises) were widely read by Locke's contemporaries and near contemporaries. His eighteenth-century readers included philosophers, historians and political theorists, but also community and political leaders, engaged laypersons, and others eager to participate in the expanding print culture of the era. His epistemological message that the mind at birth was a blank slate, waiting to be filled, complemented his political message that human beings were free and equal and had the right to create and direct the governments under which they lived. Today, Locke continues to be an accessible author. He provides food for thought to university professors and their students, but has no less to offer the general reader who is eager to enjoy the classics of world literature.
John Locke (1632-1704) was perhaps the most influential English writer of his time. His Essay concerning Human Understanding (1690) and Two Treatises of Government (1690) weighed heavily on the history of ideas in the eighteenth century, and Locke's works are often - rightly - presented as foundations of the Age of Enlightenment. Both the Essay and the Second Treatise (by far the more influential of the Two Treatises) were widely read by Locke's contemporaries and near contemporaries. His eighteenth-century readers included philosophers, historians and political theorists, but also community and political leaders, engaged laypersons, and others eager to participate in the expanding print culture of the era. His epistemological message that the mind at birth was a blank slate, waiting to be filled, complemented his political message that human beings were free and equal and had the right to create and direct the governments under which they lived. Today, Locke continues to be an accessible author. He provides food for thought to university professors and their students, but has no less to offer the general reader who is eager to enjoy the classics of world literature.
880 pages, Paperback
First published June 23, 2009
21 people are currently reading
170 people want to read
About the author
John Locke
1,947 books1,451 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
John Locke was an English philosopher. He is considered the first of the British Empiricists, but is equally important to social contract theory. His ideas had enormous influence on the development of epistemology and political philosophy, and he is widely regarded as one of the most influential Enlightenment thinkers and contributors to liberal theory. His writings influenced Voltaire and Rousseau, many Scottish Enlightenment thinkers, as well as the American revolutionaries. This influence is reflected in the American Declaration of Independence.
Locke's theory of mind is often cited as the origin for modern conceptions of identity and "the self", figuring prominently in the later works of philosophers such as David Hume, Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Immanuel Kant. Locke was the first Western philosopher to define the self through a continuity of "consciousness." He also postulated that the mind was a "blank slate" or "tabula rasa"; that is, contrary to Cartesian or Christian philosophy, Locke maintained that people are born without innate ideas.
John Locke was an English philosopher. He is considered the first of the British Empiricists, but is equally important to social contract theory. His ideas had enormous influence on the development of epistemology and political philosophy, and he is widely regarded as one of the most influential Enlightenment thinkers and contributors to liberal theory. His writings influenced Voltaire and Rousseau, many Scottish Enlightenment thinkers, as well as the American revolutionaries. This influence is reflected in the American Declaration of Independence.
Locke's theory of mind is often cited as the origin for modern conceptions of identity and "the self", figuring prominently in the later works of philosophers such as David Hume, Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Immanuel Kant. Locke was the first Western philosopher to define the self through a continuity of "consciousness." He also postulated that the mind was a "blank slate" or "tabula rasa"; that is, contrary to Cartesian or Christian philosophy, Locke maintained that people are born without innate ideas.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 31, 2021
Goodreads wouldn't let me post the whole review of this in one space, so this is [2/2].
10: Of the abuse of words
Lots of shade-throwing at lawyers and policy-writers here.
You can’t say ‘bigger matter’ because matter is an abstract concept, although similar to ‘body’.
Words = signs but not the things themselves.
“He that hath names without ideas, wants meaning in his words, and speaks only empty sounds. He that hath complex ideas without ideas for them, wants liberty and dispatch in his expressions […]. He that uses his words loosely and unsteadily will either not be minded or not understood. He that applies his names to ideas different from their common use, wants propriety in his language, and speaks gibberish. And he that hath the ideas of substances disagreeing with the real existence of things, so far wants the materials of true knowledge in his understanding, and hath instead thereof chimeras.”
11: Remedies of imperfections and abuses
Use no word without an idea behind it.
If simple, be clear. If complex, be precise. Substances are things that exist.
Propriety is the proper use of terms. Define the ones you don’t know or whose meaning has changed.
Moral discourse: be clear and distinct because you basically make up mixed modes here.
The real essence of moral words may possibly become known.
Define your terms!
Seeing is important in definition and explanation, so use pictures if you can.
BOOK FOUR
1: Of knowledge in general
Knowledge is the connection of our ideas.
It consists of ideas, the relation between ideas, co- and non-existence, and the connection between the idea and the real essence.
Memories form habitual knowledge.
2: Of the degrees of our knowledge
Certainty depends on intuition – red is red.
Everything is built on this foundation.
If you can’t tell agreement immediately, use reason. It requires more effort than intuition.
Each step requires intuition as to the agreement between ideas.
Clarity of perception can be greater/more important than the clarity of the idea.
3: On the extent of human knowledge
Nothing has two smells or colours: this is the incompatibility of co-existence.
Without care you can’t tell true from false or consistent from inconsistent.
4: On the reality of knowledge
If certainty is agreement of ideas, moral ideas can produce real knowledge.
Fuzziness of naming causes all the problems eg justice served by taking your stuff can also be injustice.
Separate names and ideas, always use the idea.
All the simple ideas in complex ideas must exist in nature. Whatever agrees with this is knowledge.
5: Of truth in general
Truth is signs that agree with each other.
Moral is according to the persuasion of our own minds.
Metaphysical is the real existence of the thing we named.
6: Of universal propositions
In nature we treat a part as the whole, not real ‘essence’.
General knowledge is all in our heads and all guesswork.
The quality of a proposition depends on the component parts standing for the same thing to everybody and there being agreement in its construction.
7: Of maxims
Knowledge is agreement of ideas.
If perceived immediately it is self evident.
The more abstract, the more difficult it is.
Maxims are useful for teaching and disputes. However it is one thing to show error, another to show truth.
Intuitive knowledge requires no proof from maxims.
It is dangerous when words are used carelessly (feel like I’ve heard this one before…)
10: Of our knowledge of the existence of a God
We exist, therefore God exists! Lol
If three sides of a triangle are equal then there has to be beginning to the universe. (Sure, Jan.)
Senseless matter cannot give itself sense.
Man is wise … by chance.
We can’t deny infinity because we don’t understand it.
You can’t understand infinite operations with your finite mind.
11: Knowledge of the existence of other things
Senses are informed by objects. This is hard or impossible to avoid.
Memories of pain aren’t that painful.
Hmm.
15: Of probability
Probability is the likeliness of something being true.
It conforms to our knowledge or the testimony of others.
The testimony of others requires their integrity, skill, consistency, and lack of contrary testimonies.
16: Of the degrees of assent
It is a bad move to judge before examining.
Proofs of proofs get weaker the further from the original they get.
Therefore it’s not the case that the older something is the more it is to be trusted.
Revelation is separate and basically outside of reason.
“We should do well to commiserate our mutual ignorance, and endeavour to remove it in all the gentle and fair ways of information; and not instantly treat others ill, as obstinate and perverse, because they will not renounce their own and receive our opinions […]
Someone please tell Twitter.
17: Of reason
Knowledge is agreement of ideas from the existence of external things.
Reason enlarges our knowledge and regulates assent.
There are four degrees of knowledge: truth, order, connection, and conclusion.
How to get rid of someone who disagrees with you: assert a higher authority (ad verecundiam); require adversary to show proof (ad ignorantium); push the consequences of their argument (ad hominem). The best kind however is proof from knowledge (ad judicium).
Reason fails when our ideas fail and it is confused by confusion. It can require discovery eg algebra. Reason doesn’t help you if you started out wrong.
Intuition is the perception of two ideas agreeing.
18: Of faith and reason
Reason is deduction from sensation or reflection.
Faith is assent to the credit of the proposer via revelation.
A blind man can’t understand sight, so a non-revelation person can’t understand the description of a revelation.
We cannot abandon reason for faith if reason disagrees with faith.
19: Of enthusiasm
Revelation is easier than the work of reason.
The strength of a connection is not testament to its correctness.
A proposition can be self evident or have clear and valid proofs.
Divine authority comes from reason or scripture, not strength of wishing it were so.
20: Of wrong assent, or error
What suits us is believed.
Error is not a fault of knowledge but of judgement. This is due to want of proofs, inability to use proofs, not wanting to use proofs, or bad probability.
Ignorance can come from lack of time or opportunity, or from government repression of information.
Inability to use proofs is due to differences in understanding.
Not wanting to is because you’re lazy or distracted.
Bad probability comes from wrong principles, received wisdom, obstinacy, or respect for authority.
People don’t know shit about the causes they follow:
“Thus men become professors of, and combatants for, those opinions they were never convinced of nor proselytes to; no, nor ever had so much as floating in their heads: and though one cannot say there are fewer improbable or erroneous opinions in the world than there are, yet this is certain: there are fewer than actually assent to them, and mistake them for truths, than is imagined.”
21: Of the division of the sciences
Natural philosophy
Ethics
Semiotics (study of signs)/logic
Thinking is about:
Things – truth
Power/actions – ends
Signs to demarcate them – clarity of ordering signs
Note to self: when you make over 3000 words of notes on a book, Goodreads does not want to support your life choices.
10: Of the abuse of words
Lots of shade-throwing at lawyers and policy-writers here.
You can’t say ‘bigger matter’ because matter is an abstract concept, although similar to ‘body’.
Words = signs but not the things themselves.
“He that hath names without ideas, wants meaning in his words, and speaks only empty sounds. He that hath complex ideas without ideas for them, wants liberty and dispatch in his expressions […]. He that uses his words loosely and unsteadily will either not be minded or not understood. He that applies his names to ideas different from their common use, wants propriety in his language, and speaks gibberish. And he that hath the ideas of substances disagreeing with the real existence of things, so far wants the materials of true knowledge in his understanding, and hath instead thereof chimeras.”
11: Remedies of imperfections and abuses
Use no word without an idea behind it.
If simple, be clear. If complex, be precise. Substances are things that exist.
Propriety is the proper use of terms. Define the ones you don’t know or whose meaning has changed.
Moral discourse: be clear and distinct because you basically make up mixed modes here.
The real essence of moral words may possibly become known.
Define your terms!
Seeing is important in definition and explanation, so use pictures if you can.
BOOK FOUR
1: Of knowledge in general
Knowledge is the connection of our ideas.
It consists of ideas, the relation between ideas, co- and non-existence, and the connection between the idea and the real essence.
Memories form habitual knowledge.
2: Of the degrees of our knowledge
Certainty depends on intuition – red is red.
Everything is built on this foundation.
If you can’t tell agreement immediately, use reason. It requires more effort than intuition.
Each step requires intuition as to the agreement between ideas.
Clarity of perception can be greater/more important than the clarity of the idea.
3: On the extent of human knowledge
Nothing has two smells or colours: this is the incompatibility of co-existence.
Without care you can’t tell true from false or consistent from inconsistent.
4: On the reality of knowledge
If certainty is agreement of ideas, moral ideas can produce real knowledge.
Fuzziness of naming causes all the problems eg justice served by taking your stuff can also be injustice.
Separate names and ideas, always use the idea.
All the simple ideas in complex ideas must exist in nature. Whatever agrees with this is knowledge.
5: Of truth in general
Truth is signs that agree with each other.
Moral is according to the persuasion of our own minds.
Metaphysical is the real existence of the thing we named.
6: Of universal propositions
In nature we treat a part as the whole, not real ‘essence’.
General knowledge is all in our heads and all guesswork.
The quality of a proposition depends on the component parts standing for the same thing to everybody and there being agreement in its construction.
7: Of maxims
Knowledge is agreement of ideas.
If perceived immediately it is self evident.
The more abstract, the more difficult it is.
Maxims are useful for teaching and disputes. However it is one thing to show error, another to show truth.
Intuitive knowledge requires no proof from maxims.
It is dangerous when words are used carelessly (feel like I’ve heard this one before…)
10: Of our knowledge of the existence of a God
We exist, therefore God exists! Lol
If three sides of a triangle are equal then there has to be beginning to the universe. (Sure, Jan.)
Senseless matter cannot give itself sense.
Man is wise … by chance.
We can’t deny infinity because we don’t understand it.
You can’t understand infinite operations with your finite mind.
11: Knowledge of the existence of other things
Senses are informed by objects. This is hard or impossible to avoid.
Memories of pain aren’t that painful.
Hmm.
15: Of probability
Probability is the likeliness of something being true.
It conforms to our knowledge or the testimony of others.
The testimony of others requires their integrity, skill, consistency, and lack of contrary testimonies.
16: Of the degrees of assent
It is a bad move to judge before examining.
Proofs of proofs get weaker the further from the original they get.
Therefore it’s not the case that the older something is the more it is to be trusted.
Revelation is separate and basically outside of reason.
“We should do well to commiserate our mutual ignorance, and endeavour to remove it in all the gentle and fair ways of information; and not instantly treat others ill, as obstinate and perverse, because they will not renounce their own and receive our opinions […]
Someone please tell Twitter.
17: Of reason
Knowledge is agreement of ideas from the existence of external things.
Reason enlarges our knowledge and regulates assent.
There are four degrees of knowledge: truth, order, connection, and conclusion.
How to get rid of someone who disagrees with you: assert a higher authority (ad verecundiam); require adversary to show proof (ad ignorantium); push the consequences of their argument (ad hominem). The best kind however is proof from knowledge (ad judicium).
Reason fails when our ideas fail and it is confused by confusion. It can require discovery eg algebra. Reason doesn’t help you if you started out wrong.
Intuition is the perception of two ideas agreeing.
18: Of faith and reason
Reason is deduction from sensation or reflection.
Faith is assent to the credit of the proposer via revelation.
A blind man can’t understand sight, so a non-revelation person can’t understand the description of a revelation.
We cannot abandon reason for faith if reason disagrees with faith.
19: Of enthusiasm
Revelation is easier than the work of reason.
The strength of a connection is not testament to its correctness.
A proposition can be self evident or have clear and valid proofs.
Divine authority comes from reason or scripture, not strength of wishing it were so.
20: Of wrong assent, or error
What suits us is believed.
Error is not a fault of knowledge but of judgement. This is due to want of proofs, inability to use proofs, not wanting to use proofs, or bad probability.
Ignorance can come from lack of time or opportunity, or from government repression of information.
Inability to use proofs is due to differences in understanding.
Not wanting to is because you’re lazy or distracted.
Bad probability comes from wrong principles, received wisdom, obstinacy, or respect for authority.
People don’t know shit about the causes they follow:
“Thus men become professors of, and combatants for, those opinions they were never convinced of nor proselytes to; no, nor ever had so much as floating in their heads: and though one cannot say there are fewer improbable or erroneous opinions in the world than there are, yet this is certain: there are fewer than actually assent to them, and mistake them for truths, than is imagined.”
21: Of the division of the sciences
Natural philosophy
Ethics
Semiotics (study of signs)/logic
Thinking is about:
Things – truth
Power/actions – ends
Signs to demarcate them – clarity of ordering signs
Note to self: when you make over 3000 words of notes on a book, Goodreads does not want to support your life choices.
November 3, 2024
A great book and a pivotal work in empiricism written by a man stretching the boundaries of both our knowledge and how long an essay can be.
Come ooooon John, an essay should not be 850 pages long. 🤣
Come ooooon John, an essay should not be 850 pages long. 🤣
January 16, 2024
"Truth has been my only aim; and wherever that has appeared to lead, my thoughts have impartially followed, without minding whether the footsteps of any other lay that way or not. Not that I want a due respect to other men's opinions; but, after all, the greatest reverence is due to truth: and I hope it will not be thought arrogance to say, that perhaps we should make greater progress in the discovery of rational and contemplative knowledge, if we sought it in the fountain, in the consideration of things themselves; and made use rather of our own thoughts than other men's to find it."
July 3, 2015
I gave only 3 stars because the edition (Wordsworth) could have been better.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews