Reference:
Ukhov A.E., Kovrov E.L., Simonyan E.G..
The problem of freedom in the philosophy of John Locke: semiotic interpretation
// Philosophical Thought. – 2023. – ¹ 10.
– P. 63-81.
DOI: 10.25136/2409-8728.2023.10.40080.
DOI: 10.25136/2409-8728.2023.10.40080
Read the article
Abstract: The article shows the connection between the social constructions of political liberalism and its ontological justification in the system of J. Locke. With the help of semiotics and comparative philosophical analysis of the views of modern philosophers B. Spinoza, T. Hobbes, J. Locke, R. Filmer, J.-J. Rousseau, I. Kant, such problems as the nature of state power, the concept of freedom, natural law, social contract, the right of the people to revolution are analyzed. The semiotic context of natural law is revealed, and it is concluded that happiness, as the goal of New Age individual’s quest, according to Locke, is thought to be a rational and, therefore, a free being. Linking the natural need to be a free being not only with the organization of state power, but also with religious need, Locke concludes that political participation itself can be considered not just as a way to achieve freedom, but also as the purpose for a person to improve themselves morally and politically. For Locke, state power turns out to be an integral part of society, and the balance between them always shifts towards society as the source of the social contract. At the same time, the negative meaning of freedom in Locke prevails over the positive, saving the latter from sliding into totalitarianism of the Jacobin type, as in Rousseau. The conclusion is drawn about the relevance of ideas about the need for free choice of citizens to build a rule of lawful state and develop democracy.
Keywords: independence of existence, common good, natural right, mutual consent, semiotics, law, personality, liberalism, freedom, state
References:
Barthes, R. (2000). Introduction to the structural analysis of narrative text, French semiotics: From structuralism to poststructuralism. Moscow: Progress.
Belkina, T.L., & Komarov, A.S. (2012). Apology for freedom of conscience in the works of John Locke, Bulletin of KSU named after N.A. Nekrasova, 2, 41-44.
Berlin, I. (2001). Philosophy of freedom. Europe. Moscow: Novoye literaturnoye obozreniye.
Hobbes, T. (1991). “Freedom is the same in both a monarchical and a democratic state”, Hobbes T. Works in 2 volumes. Vol. 2. Moscow: Mysl.
Enikeev, R. N. (2019). The historical fate of the state: a new interpretation. Legal state: theory and practice, 3(57), 17-20.
Kovrov, E.L., Kukushkin V.L., & Ukhov A.E. (2020). The crisis of local self-government reform in Russia: an experience of interdisciplinary analysis, Social and humanitarian knowledge, 5, 185-202. doi:10.34823/SGZ.2020.5.51449
Locke, J