Natural Law

Natural Law

The School of Natural Law Philosophy was an intellectual group of philosophers. They developed new ways of thinking about religion and government.

Natural law was based on moral principles, but the overall outlook changed with the times.

John Locke was a great philosopher from the middle of the 17th century.

He was a primary contributor to the new ideas concerning natural law of that time. He argued that humans in the state of nature are free and equal, yet insecure in their freedom. When they enter society, they surrender only such rights as are necessary for their security and for the common good. He also believed that each individual retains fundamental prerogatives drawn from natural law relating to the integrity of the person and property. This natural rights theory was the basis of not only the American, but also the French revolution. 1 During his lifetime, he wrote many essays and letters to his colleagues on a variety of topics:2

• Letter on Toleration (1689)

• Second Letter on Toleration (1690)

• Two Treatises of Government (1690)

• Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1690)

• Some Considerations of the Consequences of Lowering of Interest, and Raising the Value of Money (1691)

• Third Letter on Toleration (1692)

• Some Thoughts Concerning Education (1693)

• Further Considerations Concerning Raising the Value of Money (1693)

• The Reasonableness of Christianity (1695)

• A Vindication of the Reasonableness of Christianity (1695)

• A Second Vindication of the Reasonableness of Christianity (1695)

• A Letter to the Bishop of Worcester (1697)

• Discourse on Miracles

• Fourth Letter for Toleration

• An Examination of Father Malebranche's Opinion of Seeing All Things in God

• Remarks on Some of Mr Norris's Books

• Conduct of the Understanding

Locke's greatest philosophical contribution is his Essay Concerning

Human Understanding. In the winter of 1670, five or six friends were talking in his room, probably in London. The topic was the "principles of morality and revealed religion," but arguments arose and no real progress or serious discussion took place. Then, he goes on to say, "it came into my thoughts that we took a wrong course, and that before we set ourselves upon inquiries of that nature, it was necessary to examine our own abilities, and see what objects our understandings were, or were not, fitted to deal with." At the request of his friends, Locke agreed to write down his thoughts on this question at their next meeting, and he expected that a single sheet of paper would suffice for the purpose. Little did he realize the importance of the issue which he raised, and that it would take up his free time for nearly twenty years.