Episodes

  • Second Treatise of Government EP 19 The Nuremberg Trial, The Rule of Law, and Dissolution

    Second Treatise of Government EP 19 The Nuremberg Trial, The Rule of Law, and Dissolution
    Jul 19 2022
    There is more content in this, the final episode of Understanding John Locke. I discuss more of Locke's ideas about tyranny, the rule of law, and the dissolution of government. The discussion of the rule of law is applied to the justification of the Nuremberg Trials, a discussion which shows the conflict between legal positivism and Locke's theory of natural law.
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    21 mins
  • Second Treatise of Government EP18 Usurpation and Tyranny Part 2

    Second Treatise of Government EP18 Usurpation and Tyranny Part 2
    Jul 12 2022
    This episode is a discussion of Locke's definitions of usurpation and tyranny and the circumstances in which they are exercised. Question: was the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol an attempt to usurp the presidency?
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    16 mins
  • Second Treatise of Government EP17 Conquest, Tyranny and Dissolution, Part 1

    Second Treatise of Government EP17 Conquest, Tyranny and Dissolution, Part 1
    Jul 5 2022
    How does John Locke answer the question "When is it justifiable to resist the commands of a sitting ruler or rulers of a civil society?" Locke answers the question by defining four different categories or situations in which resistance of the people is justifiable: Conquest, Usurpation, Tyranny and Dissolution.
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    18 mins
  • Second Treatise of Government EP16 Separation of Powers

    Second Treatise of Government EP16 Separation of Powers
    Jun 28 2022
    In this episode Professor Houlgate discusses Locke's argument for the necessity of dividing legislative and executive power, giving each type of political power to different persons. He also introduces the concept of federative power and subordinates both it and the executive power to the legislative, the latter of which Locke calls "the supreme power." Finally, Locke draws a distinction between paternal, political and despotical powers, explaining why we should not think of political power as similar to the power of a parent over their children, or like the power of a master over his slaves.
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    19 mins
  • Second Treatise of Government EP15 The Extent of Political Power

    Second Treatise of Government EP15 The Extent of Political Power
    Jun 21 2022
    In this episode Professor Houlgate explains John Locke's discussion of the great variety of governments that can be legitimately formed by the people; for example, democracy, oligarchy and even monarchy, so long as a majority of the people desire this. Second, Locke makes a recommendation about the extent (limits) of legislative power, although he says nothing about the limits of political power enshrined in the first ten amendments of the U.S. Constitution.
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    17 mins
  • Second Treatise of Government EP 14 The Ends of Political Society

    Second Treatise of Government EP 14 The Ends of Political Society
    Jun 14 2022
    The word "ends" in the sub-title means "goals," "objectives," or "purposes." The ends of political society are to repair the defects of the state of nature. Locke identifies and discusses three defects which can only be repaired by those remedies which will lead to political or civil society.
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    16 mins
  • Second Treatise of Government EP 13 The Beginning of Political Society

    Second Treatise of Government EP 13 The Beginning of Political Society
    Jun 7 2022
    This episode discusses the hat trick of logic played by John Locke in chapter 7 of Second Treatise. He sets out a deductive argument that purports to prove that a democracy that requires a unanimous vote before any proposal becomes law is a logical impossibility, that is, such a democracy cannot exist. Why? Listen to this episode to find out.
    In the second part of this episode, we will discuss Locke's distinction between express and tacit consent, and the application of this to one's duty to obey the law.
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    12 mins
  • Second Treatise of Government EP 12 Political Society and Monarchy

    Second Treatise of Government EP 12 Political Society and Monarchy
    May 31 2022
    Episode 12 is an account of Locke's theory about the origin of political or civil society. He argues that political society is inevitable because the natural right to punish offenders of the law of nature ultimately leads to (what Hobbes calls) "a war of all against all." Locke also argues that absolute monarchy does not qualify as a political society because the relationship Locke describes between the monarch and all others makes political society a logical impossibility.
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    15 mins