Locke state of nature in wolff

The idea of a ‘state of nature’ is the idea of life without government, without a state or laws. To imagine a state of nature, we imagine away government, law, police, and see what we are left with. In everyday life, we take it for granted that we do – that there are things we are not allowed to do, laws we should not break, that if we do, we will be punished, and that these matters are decided by other people. Why should we accept this? If we want to see what living under a state does for us, it is helpful to imagine being without it.

According to Locke, the state of nature is “first, a state of perfect freedom; second, a state of equality; and third, bound by a Law of Nature”. “Hobbes’ principle of equality was a claim about the mental physical capabilities of all people. For Locke it is a moral claim about rights: no person has a natural right to subordinate any other.”

John Locke agrees with Hobbes that the state of nature is a state of perfect freedom and equality. But he understands both these terms differently. For Hobbes, equality is about our ability to gain power and satisfy our desires, and liberty just means that we each have the natural right to do whatever we think is necessary to secure self-preservation. Locke argues for a moral interpretation of each term. Equality means no one has the right to hold power over anyone else. And while we have the right to self-preservation, there are limitations on what we may do, given by what Locke calls the Law of Nature. The Law of Nature says that no person may subordinate another, harm his life, health, liberty or possessions (except in self-defence), and furthermore, that we should help each other when this does not harm ourselves. And so, Locke says, the state of nature is a state of liberty but not a state of ‘licence’, because it still falls under a law, i.e., the Law of Nature.

Locke, however, disagrees with Hobbes about scarcity, one of the conditions that leads to war. In the state of nature, there is plenty of land for each person to have some for themselves, which they can cultivate and so provide themselves with food and shelter. And most people will prefer to do this than try to attack someone else to steal what they have grown, so it is possible that we live together peacefully. In fact, we can argue that we have a right to own land, because ownership is the most efficient and effective way of securing what we need to live. As long as there is enough land for other people as well, then taking land for ourselves is no violation of the Law of Nature.

He also says there must be a natural right, held by each person, to punish those who offend against the Law of Nature.” “Without the natural right to punish it is hard to see how the sovereign of any state can have the right to punish an alien who has not consented to the laws.”

In the Second Treatise, Locke rises above the specifics of the political situation described in the Introduction to outline a coherent theory of liberal political government, based on the sanctity of individual property and the state of nature. In Locke’s state of nature, no person has control over another, natural law governs and renders all people equal, and every individual holds the executive power of natural law.

Locke’s theory includes many assumptions. First is the assumption of a system of morality–the natural law derives from a theory of justice, a set of rights. No one would have any “rights” at all in the absence of a moral code applicable to human actions, nor would there be any standard of “just” punishment. Locke frequently uses the term “rights” and appeals to conscience and “calm reason”, all of which reflect his assumptions about justice and morality.

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