Poerty analysis

In this paragraph , John Locke explains his rationale for having written such a long and seemingly tedious essay . The paragraph also contains a sort of apology and disclaimer for the apparent faults of the essay

Locke writes with an exaggerated humility , first explaining that he knows it may be a blemish on his reputation for having published such a “flawed ” essay . He asks forgiveness for his laziness ‘ for which however , he thinks he has a good reason . He says that the essay is not intended for those who have given thorough thought to the [banner_entry_middle]

issues he discusses it is only for those who have not given them much consideration , because the ideas presented are merely from my own coarse thoughts

He also gives a rationale for having written such a long discourse that contains many repeating ideas being said in different ways . He explains that for a certain idea , one explanation may be confusing to a specific person , while another explanation for the same idea may be easily understood . He uses food as analogy : different people may prefer different ways of dressing the same meat . He then explains that he was encouraged to publish the essay for this reason . He concludes the paragraph saying that he would prefer that people who are “speculative and quick-sighted ” should find the essay tedious , than that less knowledgeable readers fail to understand his ideas

Locke ‘s ideas are obviously quite profound , which makes the humility he expresses suspect . However , whether the humility that he expresses is false or not is not exactly clear from this one paragraph alone . The paragraph does give some insight into the mode of thinking during Locke ‘s time . Reputation was an important thing for philosophers such as Locke , and his apology and disclaimers serve to prevent any potential accusations of redundancy and immodesty

References

Kemerling , G (2001 . A guide to Locke ‘s essay–Introduction . Philosophy Pages . Retrieved January 29 , 2007 , from http /www .philosophypages .com /locke /g00 .htm

Locke , J (1689 . An Essay Concerning Human Understanding . Retrieved January 29 , 2007 , from http /www .gutenberg .org /s /10615 /10615 .txt

Uzgalis , W (2005 . John Locke . The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2005 Edition . Retrieved January 29 , 2007 , from http /plato .stanford .edu /archives /fall2005 /entries / locke… [banner_entry_footer]