John Locke (1632-1704)
This philosopher
was born in the village of Wrington, Somerset, in 1632. He was educated at
the University of Oxford and lectured on Greek, rhetoric, and moral philosophy
at Oxford from 1661 to 1664. He turned to the study of medicine and science,
receiving a medical degree, but his interest in philosophy was reawakened
by the study of Descartes (a philosopher). This philosopher died in 1704 due
to ill health.
The picture above is a portrait of John Locke.
This philosopher sees the universe as made up of material bodies, which in turn are made of "insensible particles" (very small or gradual particles - currently known as atoms), which interact mechanically. He believes the ideas of the mathematically determinable qualities of an object, such as shape, motion, weight, and number, actually exist in the world. This means that John Locke agrees with the existence of some significant attributes under the study of physics. John Locke also believed that genuine knowledge cannot be found in natural science since the essence (the greatest importance) of physical objects that science studies cannot be known. In other words, John Locke does not believe that physical objects can be reduced to a crucial element.
The picture above involves motion, weight, and shape, all of which are mathematical qualities of an object in which John Locke believes to exist in the world.
