By Peter Josephson

In The Great Art of Government: Locke's Use of Consent, Assistant Professor of Politics Peter Josephson reveals a Locke as much concerned with the effective functioning of government as with the roots of its moral legitimacy.

In examining the foundation of Locke's political theory, Josephson explores ways in which Locke's government by consent can coexist with the preservation of the law of nature or reason. The book offers serious readers a richer, deeper, and more nuanced understanding of this formative thinker and the liberalism he inspired.