John Locke Quotes
John Locke was an English philosopher and physician, regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers. In the Essay Concerning Human Understanding he argued that the mind begins as a tabula rasa, with all knowledge derived from experience. The quotes below are attributed to John Locke, organized by topic.
John Locke on Freedom
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Attributed to John Locke:
“The end of law is not to abolish or restrain, but to preserve and enlarge freedom.”
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Attributed to John Locke:
“Where there is no law, there is no freedom.”
John Locke on Justice
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Attributed to John Locke:
“All mankind being all equal and independent, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty, or possessions.”
John Locke on Knowledge
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Attributed to John Locke:
“No man's knowledge here can go beyond his experience.”
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Attributed to John Locke:
“It is one thing to show a man that he is in error, and another to put him in possession of truth.”
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Attributed to John Locke:
“There is frequently more to be learned from the unexpected questions of a child than the discourses of men.”
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Attributed to John Locke:
“Education begins the gentleman, but reading, good company, and reflection must finish him.”
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Attributed to John Locke:
“New opinions are always suspected, and usually opposed, without any other reason but because they are not common.”
John Locke on Mind
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Attributed to John Locke:
“Reading furnishes the mind only with materials of knowledge; it is thinking that makes what we read ours.”
John Locke on Politics
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Attributed to John Locke:
“Government has no other end, but the preservation of property.”
John Locke on Virtue
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Attributed to John Locke:
“The dread of evil is a much more forcible principle of human actions than the prospect of good.”