The Theory of the State (Part 1)

Author: (English) Locke
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 1982-11-01
Features: Locke's Two Treatises of Civil Government were successively written and published in 1689 and 1690. Its fundamental spirit lies in defending and theoretically summarizing the so-called "Glorious Revolution" of England that had just ended in 1688. The first treatise focuses on refuting the reactionary arguments of the Royalist Filmer, who advocated the divine right of kings and hereditary monarchy, while the second treatise elaborates on Locke's own political theory regarding the parliamentary system. It is generally recognized that the second treatise is more theoretically valuable. Therefore, in the 1960s, we first published the translation of the second treatise, accompanied by a lengthy preface. Now, we are publishing the translation of the first treatise to complete the entire work, providing a reference for the academic community. This book is an important political theory work by the 17th-century English thinker Locke, and the second treatise has already been included in this series for publication. The main content of the first treatise is to refute the theory of the then British Royalist Filmer in defense of the monarchy, while advocating popular sovereignty.