by John Locke

Commonly acknowledged to be the most influential philosopher writing in English, John Locke (1632-1704) was a thinker whose career spanned a wide range of fields. His skills included those of educator, scientist, physician, diplomat, economist, theologian, civil servant, and political theorist. Locke played each of these roles at various times in his professional life. He spent one year as a lecturer at Oxford University, where he had been an undergraduate in the 1650s. In 1666 Locke accepted a position as personal physician to Anthony Ashley Cooper, later the earl of Shaftesbury. The two men became friends, and as Shaftesbury became embroiled in a political struggle with King Charles II during the 1670s, he came to rely on Locke for political as well as medical advice. In 1675, for reasons of health, Locke moved to France, where he read the...