Locke and Hume

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the philosophers, John Locke (1632-1704) and David Hume (1711-76). The paper examines their views on ethics and morality, focusing on their treatments of the following concepts: state of nature, social contract, and the role of the government. The paper explores the idea of moral philosophy according to the works of Locke and Hume.

From the Paper:

"The moral dimension of our everyday experience is a pervasive fact. Moral philosopy seeks to make sense of this moral dimension in our lives. Moral philosophy seeks to make sense of this dimension in our lives, The philosophical study of morality, by its reasoned approach to the concepts that figure centrally in our moral judgments, can help us be more objective. In particular, it can help us by alerting us to some of the characteristic deceptions that prevent us from seeing our own moral virtues and defects.
The philosopher's approach to such topics as good and evil or vice or virtue differs in important ways from that of the social scientist or theologian. A sociologist or an anthropologist, for example, describes and interprets a society's mores and is careful to keep the account morally neutral. A theologi an will call on us to act in a particular way and to avoid certain sinful practices."

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