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John Locke: A Biography
First published in 1957, Maurice Cranston's book is recognized as the definitive biography of John Locke. It provides that rare combination of sound scholarship, a wealth and variety of original source material, and a lively, compelling narrative.
518 pages, Paperback
Published October 24, 1985
76 people want to read
About the author
Maurice Cranston
68 books8 followersMaurice William Cranston was an English philosopher, professor, and author. He served for many years as Professor of Political Science at the London School of Economics, and was also known for his popular publications. In the late 1970s and early 1980s he was Professor of Political Theory at the European University Institute in Florence (Italy).
Cranston's major works include biographies of John Locke, for which he received the 1957 James Tait Black Memorial Prize, and Rousseau, Jean-Paul Sartre, and others addressing the history of liberty. He contributed to many publications in both Britain and the United States and wrote scripts for the BBC. In 1946 two of his detective novels were published by John Westhouse: Tomorrow We'll Be Sober and Philosopher's Hemlock.
Cranston's intellectual abilities were varied. His first academic book, Freedom: A New Analysis (1954), covered history (the history of liberalism), politics (a precursive discussion of what Sir Isaiah Berlin would later analyse as negative and positive liberty) and a philosophical attempt to resolve or at least elucidate freedom of the will. The philosophical section was the least successful; and Cranston never again attempted pure philosophy. His main academic strengths were as a biographer and as an intellectual historian.
In his later years, Cranston moved to the political right, and expressed admiration for Margaret Thatcher. Cranston also contributed to The American Spectator magazine.
He died of a heart attack while taping a television production in London for the BBC.
(excerpted from Wikipedia)
Cranston's major works include biographies of John Locke, for which he received the 1957 James Tait Black Memorial Prize, and Rousseau, Jean-Paul Sartre, and others addressing the history of liberty. He contributed to many publications in both Britain and the United States and wrote scripts for the BBC. In 1946 two of his detective novels were published by John Westhouse: Tomorrow We'll Be Sober and Philosopher's Hemlock.
Cranston's intellectual abilities were varied. His first academic book, Freedom: A New Analysis (1954), covered history (the history of liberalism), politics (a precursive discussion of what Sir Isaiah Berlin would later analyse as negative and positive liberty) and a philosophical attempt to resolve or at least elucidate freedom of the will. The philosophical section was the least successful; and Cranston never again attempted pure philosophy. His main academic strengths were as a biographer and as an intellectual historian.
In his later years, Cranston moved to the political right, and expressed admiration for Margaret Thatcher. Cranston also contributed to The American Spectator magazine.
He died of a heart attack while taping a television production in London for the BBC.
(excerpted from Wikipedia)
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 14, 2022
This is a clear, authoritative biography of John Locke's life and provides a helpful summary of his main works. I greatly enjoyed Cranston's readable yet erudite style. We are given a detailed picture of what happened: sometimes, I thought, we might have been given more on why it happened.
From this book, I got a strong sense that Locke was very much a man of his times, so I am left feeling unsure why he became a man for our time, and all times. He was pragmatic, materialistic, and sometimes quite brutal in what he recommended to address social problems. I didn't get much sense that he had a strong sense of any ideals in relation to toleration, human rights, education or political action. Yet he broke new ground in all these areas.
From this book, I got a strong sense that Locke was very much a man of his times, so I am left feeling unsure why he became a man for our time, and all times. He was pragmatic, materialistic, and sometimes quite brutal in what he recommended to address social problems. I didn't get much sense that he had a strong sense of any ideals in relation to toleration, human rights, education or political action. Yet he broke new ground in all these areas.
May 12, 2009
Cranston's biography focuses on Locke's intellectual development and the evolution of his ideas, an approach which is often neglected when looking backwards. Readers should, however, keep in mind that Cranston often judges his subject by the standards of his own age, rather than attempting to explicate them from the point of view of Locke's contemporaries.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews