John Locke and His Essay Concerning Human Understanding - 1690 (Edexcel A-Level History): Revision Notes
John Locke and His Essay Concerning Human Understanding - 1690
Introduction to John Locke
John Locke (1632-1704) is recognised as one of the most influential thinkers in the development of liberal philosophy. His ideas about individual rights and liberties helped shape political thinking for the next three centuries and directly influenced both the French and American Revolutions. Unlike Thomas Hobbes, who justified strong monarchical power, Locke championed the rights of the individual and opposed absolute monarchy.
Locke became internationally famous for his work Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1690), which explored fundamental questions about how humans acquire knowledge and understanding. This work established him as the father of modern empiricism - the belief that all knowledge comes from experience and observation.
Locke's influence extended far beyond philosophy. His political theories provided the intellectual foundation for modern democratic governments and constitutional limitations on power, making him one of the Enlightenment's most practically significant thinkers.
Background context: Hobbes and deductive reasoning
To understand Locke's contribution, it's helpful to compare his approach with that of Thomas Hobbes. Hobbes used deductive reasoning to defend the idea of powerful monarchy. Deductive reasoning works by starting with a general premise and drawing specific conclusions from it.
Hobbes' Deductive Reasoning Pattern:
- General Premise: All men are born bad
- Specific Case: Nero was a man
- Conclusion: Therefore, Nero was a bad emperor because he was born bad, not because of the political system he operated within
This approach had significant problems. Hobbes argued that corrupt politicians result from human nature itself, not from flawed political systems like monarchy or democracy. By starting with the questionable premise that all men are inherently flawed, he used deductive logic to promote his own ideological views whilst ignoring evidence that powerful monarchies could produce negative outcomes.
The Fundamental Weakness of Deductive Reasoning:
The weakness of deductive reasoning becomes clear when the original premise is questionable. For example, the argument that 'God rules alone, God appoints monarchs, therefore monarchs should rule alone' is not deductively valid because historical evidence shows that absolute monarchs have often abused their powers.
If your starting premise is false or unproven, all conclusions derived from it are unreliable - no matter how logical the reasoning appears.
Hobbes, materialism and magic
A central concept in Hobbes' philosophy was materialism - the idea that everything in the universe is created by matter (physical substance that occupies space and has mass). According to this view, all observed events, including those involving the mind and spirituality, result from matter acting upon matter.
As a complete materialist, Hobbes left no room for belief in the supernatural or magic, since these were not founded on matter. This philosophical position allowed concepts such as the soul and the existence of angels to be questioned. Hobbes acknowledged that unusual phenomena like miracles had never been proven to violate natural laws, and he explained cases of supposed demonic possession as actually being madness or epilepsy. However, he didn't completely rule out the possibility of spirits with material bodies too fine for humans to see.
Hobbes' Impact on Witchcraft Beliefs:
Hobbes lived to the age of 91 and his ideas became particularly influential in the early 18th century. Many historians argue that his materialism contributed significantly to the decline in witchcraft beliefs, especially after 1660. Sceptical writers like John Webster and Balthasar Bekker, along with judges such as John Holt, approached witchcraft cases with a rational mindset heavily influenced by Hobbes' work.
Locke's career and background
John Locke was born in 1632 to a Puritan father who fought for Parliament during the Civil War. He studied medicine at Oxford University, though he also devoted considerable time to ancient philosophy - which he eventually rejected as inadequate for addressing contemporary problems.
Locke entered the service of the Earl of Shaftesbury, a prominent founder of the Whig political movement and England's Lord Chancellor. This patronage enabled Locke to write and publish important works of political philosophy. However, his career was marked by periods of exile:
- In 1675, when Shaftesbury's political fortunes declined, Locke fled to Holland
- He returned briefly to England in 1679 before leaving again
- He only returned permanently in 1688 during the Glorious Revolution, accompanying the new Queen Mary
Although Locke had been writing for many years, most of his works were only published after the Glorious Revolution. His ideas gained influence rapidly, and by his death in 1704, his theories were widely known. His political ideas were seen as having been applied in the Glorious Revolution of 1688-89. Besides the Essay Concerning Human Understanding, his ethical and philosophical ideas appeared in Treatises of Government (1689).
The structure of the Essay Concerning Human Understanding
The Essay is divided into four books, each addressing different aspects of human knowledge and understanding:
Book I: No innate ideas
- Locke argued that humans are not born with any pre-existing knowledge
- He famously described the mind at birth as completely blank - like white paper void of all characters
- Knowledge is acquired entirely through experience, not through innate ideas present from birth
Book II: Knowledge from experience
- This section develops the argument that knowledge can only come from experience
- Locke emphasised that our understanding is built up through observation and reflection
Book III: Language and categorisation
- Locke examined why humans use single words to categorise many different things
- For example, we use the word 'tree' to denote numerous different types of trees
Book IV: The nature and limits of knowledge
- Locke questioned whether knowledge can ever be entirely accurate or truthful
- He argued that every person's knowledge is unique to them and shaped by their individual point of view
- This raised important questions about the reliability and objectivity of human understanding
Locke's philosophy of matter and perception
Like Hobbes, Locke was a materialist who argued that all things consist only of matter. However, he made an important distinction between two types of qualities that objects possess:
Locke's Distinction Between Primary and Secondary Qualities:
Primary qualities:
- These include size, shape, and solidity
- They remain the same regardless of how someone perceives them
- They are objective and unchangeable
- All people would agree on these qualities
Secondary qualities:
- These include colour, smell, and taste
- They are perceived differently depending on conditions and individual perception
- They are subjective and variable
Locke saw little value in focusing on secondary qualities because primary qualities are unchangeable and universally accepted. This distinction had important implications for understanding what could be known with certainty.
The Essay's central argument: experience as the source of knowledge
At the heart of Locke's Essay was the revolutionary idea that experience is the most important source of human knowledge. This is clearly expressed in a famous passage from the work:
The Blank Slate Concept:
Let us then suppose the mind to be, as we say, white paper, void of all characters, without any ideas: How comes it to be furnished? Whence comes it by that vast store which the busy and boundless fancy of man has painted on it with an almost endless variety? Whence has it all the MATERIALS of reason and knowledge? To this I answer, in one word, from EXPERIENCE. In that all our knowledge is founded; and from that it ultimately derives itself.
This concept of the mind as a blank slate (often called tabula rasa in Latin) fundamentally challenged the traditional view that humans possessed innate knowledge.
Locke identified two sources of experience that supply our understanding with the materials of thinking:
- External observation - our senses observing external objects in the world
- Internal reflection - our minds perceiving and reflecting on our own internal operations
These two 'fountains of knowledge' are the sources from which all our ideas naturally spring.
The Essay's significance for magic and witchcraft beliefs
Locke's philosophical position had profound implications for beliefs about magic and witchcraft:
Materialism and the supernatural:
- As a materialist and strong believer in empiricism, Locke made no allowances for the supernatural in his philosophy
- However, he did not explicitly deny that spirits existed
The limits of knowledge about spirits:
- Locke argued it was impossible to arrive at any certain knowledge of spirits because he had not experienced them himself
- Since spirits do not possess primary qualities (the objective, unchangeable qualities like size and shape), their nature and even their existence are based entirely on personal perceptions
- This means claims about spirits can never be proved with certainty
- Knowledge of the supernatural thus falls outside the realm of what can be known empirically
An Unexpected Belief:
Surprisingly, Locke did maintain some belief in astrology. He claimed it could be useful for practical purposes, such as determining which medicinal herbs to use at different times of the year. He justified this view through experience - observing that different medicinal herbs seemed to work better at different times. This shows that even Locke's empiricism could sometimes lead to conclusions we might now consider unscientific.
Contemporary reactions: Some of Locke's contemporaries interpreted his denial of innate ideas as heretical because it suggested that humans, rather than God, were responsible for learning and the acquisition of knowledge.
Locke's influence on the decline of witchcraft beliefs
Locke's ideas contributed to the decline of witchcraft beliefs in several important ways:
Key Factors in Locke's Impact on Witchcraft Beliefs:
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Empirical approach: His insistence that knowledge must be based on experience and observation encouraged people to question claims about witchcraft that lacked empirical evidence
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Materialist framework: By arguing that everything consists of matter and can be explained through material causes, Locke's philosophy left little room for supernatural explanations
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Scepticism about spirits: His argument that certain knowledge of spirits is impossible undermined the evidential basis for witchcraft accusations
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Influence on legal and intellectual figures: Locke's ideas shaped the thinking of judges, writers, and educated people who increasingly approached witchcraft cases with rational scepticism
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Philosophical legitimacy: As an internationally respected thinker whose political ideas were applied in the Glorious Revolution, Locke gave philosophical legitimacy to sceptical attitudes toward the supernatural
Comparison between Hobbes and Locke
Similarities:
- Both were materialists who believed everything consists of matter
- Both left little room for the supernatural in their philosophical systems
- Both contributed to a more rational, scientific approach to understanding the world
- Both influenced the decline of witchcraft beliefs through their emphasis on material explanations
Differences:
Political philosophy: Hobbes justified strong monarchy and centralised power, whilst Locke championed individual rights and opposed absolute monarchy
- Reasoning method: Hobbes relied heavily on deductive reasoning, whilst Locke emphasised empiricism and inductive reasoning from experience
- View of human nature: Hobbes believed humans were inherently bad and flawed, whilst Locke saw the human mind as a blank slate shaped entirely by experience
- Impact on politics: Hobbes' ideas supported existing monarchical power, whilst Locke's ideas inspired revolutionary movements and constitutional limits on power
Key Points to Remember:
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John Locke's Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1690) established empiricism as a major philosophical approach, arguing that all knowledge comes from experience rather than innate ideas
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Locke described the mind at birth as a blank slate (tabula rasa) - completely empty of knowledge and filled only through experience and observation
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As a materialist, Locke believed everything consists of matter and left little room for supernatural explanations, though he argued certain knowledge of spirits is impossible rather than denying their existence outright
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Locke distinguished between primary qualities (objective, unchangeable properties like size and shape) and secondary qualities (subjective properties like colour and taste that depend on perception)
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Locke's emphasis on empirical evidence and material explanations contributed significantly to the decline of witchcraft beliefs, influencing judges, writers, and educated opinion toward rational scepticism about supernatural claims