The Natural..The Relative

“The state of nature has a law of nature to govern it,” and that law is reason. Locke believes that reason teaches that "no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty or possessions"; and that transgressions of this kind may be punished by those offended. It seems Locke’s view of the state of nature is deduced from Christian beliefs, as we are God’s possessions and do not harm ourselves, we in turn do not harm others. As presented by Locke, the state of nature is a condition before the rule of law and is thus a symptom of anarchy. Encouraging individuals to act when wronged leaves society almost devoid of social boundaries and thus independent of the structure of an authoritative power. In Locke’s description, the state of nature is a state of equality in which no man has power over another and all are able (and almost encouraged) to do as they please. However, Locke makes it clear that this liberty within the state of nature is not a license for the abuse of others, but that there exists within the state of nature a natural law, under which each individual has the power to execute such laws as they are entirely universal. In short, Locke establishes that the punishment must fit the crime. Within the state of nature a person can “redress” a crime to discourage the offender from repeating it, or others from following his example. He concluded that all people are in a state of nature until a contract/agreement makes them members of a political society. Outside of those means an individual lives in the state of nature and is driven to leave that state for a state of war, under which the natural laws of the state of nature do not preside. However, an individual may be driven to leave the state of nature by reason of self-preservation; what is determined as “wrong” has become relative. The act of an individual that consequently offends their neighbor may not be wrong in their own eyes, but it is not their opinion that matters. The offended, in any circumstance, may find fault worthy of personal justice and thus pose a threat to the alleged offender. And so relativity places the state of nature on unstable gound.