Why Does Locke Believe That Slavery Violates Natural Law Essay

Why Does Locke Believe That Slavery Violates Natural Law - Essay Example Slavery is contrary to the law of nature as the man does not surrender his liberty when becoming the member of society. He is not coerced by any legislative authority since that legislative power in the â€Å"commonwealth† is entrusted by the consent of the individual, not by coercion or restraints of law and the legislative takes care of the trust of the people of the commonwealth. â€Å"[Individual is] not to be subject to the inconstant, uncertain, unknown, arbitrary will of another man: as freedom of nature is, to be under no other restraint but the law of nature.†(1) (italics are of the writer) A man can not surrender his freedom to any arbitrary power for surrendering his freedom puts his life at stake.In that state, he does not have â€Å"power of his own life† therefore by consent or by force he does not allow any absolute power to make him a slave. Though Locke confessed that in the past, (one must remember that empiricist eulogized the glory of past), i n the Jews and in other nations people sold themselves (Locke is not ready to believe that they were made slaves instead he deliberately used the phrase â€Å"men did sell themselves†) to do the manual work. Locke says that it is evident that the person who sold himself voluntarily did not become a slave of some despot. Bertrand Russell suggests that this theory of the law of nature and the state of nature is clear but puzzling also. Locke is utilitarian in his ethics but in his thoughts, he does not seem to think by following his own utilitarian ethics. His theory is confounded on the subject of good laws and bad laws. He is indebted to Bible for his parameters of ethics as to him moral rules are Divine rules so it is the law of nature to decide which action is good and which one is punishable. The great objection to the law of nature is that in the state of nature there is no judge to decide the disputes of the people and a person has to defend his rights.