Two Treatises on Government: A Translation into Modern English

The classic 1690 book is one of the most important and influential works on government ever published. The first part demolishes the main authoritarian/totalitarian ideology of its day: the doctrine of the divine right of kings to absolute arbitrary power over their subjects. The second sets out the real social origins, functions, and limits of government. Locke demonstrates that far from God and natural law ordaining all-powerful hereditary dictatorship, the only legitimate form of government is one established by the consent of the people and committed to upholding their fundamental human rights to life, liberty, and property.

The book justified the Glorious Revolution establishing parliamentary government in England and was an inspiration behind the American Declaration of Independence a century later. Around the world, it continues to have a profound influence on the theory and practice of limited representative government and the protection of basic rights and freedoms under the rule of law.

However, the book is now well over 300 years old and present-day readers find its language difficult to follow and understand in places. This version translates the work into current English and seeks to make its substantive content clearer.

Literalness and original word order and grammar are retained as far as possible. Nonetheless, the primary objective has been to improve the readability of the text in order to better convey its meaning. The considerable distance in time between the two documents has inevitably meant a considerable difference in conventional writing styles. In addition, much of Lockes analysis is intrinsically highly complex and subtle. Thus, this new version diverges significantly from the original throughout.