Summary
John Locke's "Second Treatise of Government" argues that political power, granted by individuals to society and its governors, is conditioned on the preservation of their property. When legislative or executive powers exceed their trust by attempting to seize subjects' property or impose arbitrary rule, they violate this fundamental condition. This breach of trust absolves the people of further obedience and grants them the right to re-establish a new legislative to ensure their safety and security. The ultimate purpose of entering into society and authorizing a legislature is the preservation of property, serving as the primary guard against the arbitrary dominion of any part of the community.
The text establishes that individuals retain certain rights in the state of nature, including the right to use means for preserving their property and punishing transgressions against the law of nature. These rights are surrendered to society and its governors with the expectation that they will be employed for the collective good and the protection of property. Locke posits that the supreme power cannot take any part of a subject's property without their consent, as doing so negates the very purpose for which society was formed. This emphasizes that government is not an absolute power but a trust established to secure the people's possessions and liberties.
Key concepts
- Property — The preservation of property is the fundamental end for which men enter into society and establish government.
- Breach of Trust — When governors transgress the fundamental rule of society by attempting to grasp absolute power or seize property, they forfeit their authority.
- State of War — Legislators who endeavor to take away or destroy the property of the people, or reduce them to slavery, put themselves into a state of war with the people.
- Original Liberty — Upon a breach of trust by the legislative, the people have a right to resume their original liberty and establish a new legislative.
- Political Power — The power every man has in the state of nature, which he gives up to society and governors to be employed for their good and the preservation of their property.
From the book
CHAPTER. IV. OF SLAVERY. Sect. 22. THE natural liberty of man is to be free from any superior
Sect. 23. This freedom from absolute, arbitrary power, is so necessary
Indeed, having by his fault forfeited his own life, by some act that
Popular questions readers ask
- Locke states the lost middle papers "were more than all the rest" and contained a detailed refutation of Sir Robert Filmer. If these papers were rediscovered, how might their content alter or deepen our understanding of Locke's arguments in the "Second Treatise," particularly regarding the scope and nature of the challenges he sought to overcome?
- Locke explicitly states his purpose is to "establish the throne of our great restorer, our present King William; to make good his title, in the consent of the people." Explain how this immediate political agenda might shape the *types* of philosophical arguments Locke presents about the "true original extent and end of Civil Government," and what implications this has for the universal applicability of his theories.
- The preface mentions the English people "saved the nation when it was on the very brink of slavery and ruin." Without reading the core arguments of the Treatise, what fundamental assumptions about the nature of power, individual liberty, and the ultimate purpose of government can you infer Locke already holds, simply from this strong assertion?
- The title page states the work "DETECTED AND OVERTHROWN" the "FALSE PRINCIPLES AND FOUNDATION OF SIR ROBERT FILMER." Based solely on Locke's stated justification for King William's rule through "the consent of the people," how would you hypothesize the core difference between Filmer's "false principles" and Locke's "true original extent and end of Civil Government"?
- The text details various editions, collations, and Locke's "last Corrections and Improvements." How do these textual history details influence our approach to interpreting Locke's work, and what specific questions might a scholar ask about the evolution or stability of Locke's ideas given the existence of multiple authoritative versions?