Available from UMI in association with The British Library. ;The major task of this dissertation is to offer a scholarly interpretation of Locke's political theory, while its minor task is to criticize his political theory. ;Introduction presents the broad framework of interpretation which I adopt, the framework of classical liberalism. Classical liberalism can be summed up in the words of Lippmann: "Thus in a free society the state does not administer the affairs of men. It administers justice …
Read moreAvailable from UMI in association with The British Library. ;The major task of this dissertation is to offer a scholarly interpretation of Locke's political theory, while its minor task is to criticize his political theory. ;Introduction presents the broad framework of interpretation which I adopt, the framework of classical liberalism. Classical liberalism can be summed up in the words of Lippmann: "Thus in a free society the state does not administer the affairs of men. It administers justice among men who conduct their own affairs." "Classical liberalism", as I use the expression, is a theoretical tradition. In Britain, Locke, Hume and Smith are the main proponents of classical liberalism. Its chief feature is that it defends the rule of law on the one hand, and the liberty of each individual man on the other. The state, on this view, is a predominantly judicial entity while private men are predominantly economic beings. Classical liberalism is the doctrine which asserts that there is, and ought to be, a harmony between law and liberty; or between public justice and private property. Locke's political theory belongs to this species of liberalism. ;Chapter 1 offers a detailed exposition of Locke's classical liberalism. Chapter 2 examines the interpretations of Locke's political theory offered by recent scholars and philosophers. Chapter 3 offers a detailed analysis of Locke's concept of property, by combining historical scholarship with philosophical criticism. Chapter 4 attempts to criticize Locke's liberal political theory. It tries to show how his liberal political theory disintegrates when its basis--his account of appropriation--gets undermined