Lockean proviso
Encyclopedia
The Lockean Proviso is a portion of John Locke's labor theory of property
which says that though individuals have a right to acquire private property from nature, that they must leave "enough and as good in common...to others."
The phrase "Lockean Proviso" was coined by political philosopher Robert Nozick
. It is based on the ideas elaborated by John Locke
in his Second Treatise of Government. Locke's ideas of self-ownership
allow a person the freedom to mix his or her labor with natural resources
, originally common property, thus making it their private property
. Locke concludes that people need to be able to protect the resources they are using to live on, their property, and that this is a natural right. Nozick used this idea to form his Lockean Proviso which governs the initial acquisition of property in a society. Like Locke, Nozick believes in self-ownership and thus is a libertarian
. But in order for his ideas of ownership of property to get off the ground and be cogent, he devised the criterion to determine what makes property acquisition just, which is the proviso. The proviso says that though every appropriation of property is a diminution of another's rights to it, it is acceptable as long as it does not make anyone worse off than they would have been without any private property.
Locke's proviso has been used by geoists and socialists
to point to land acquisition as illegitimate without compensation. In geoism (Georgism), the possession of land is proper only so long as the market rent is paid to the relevant community. If a plot of land has a positive rent, that implies that there is not land of similar quality freely available to others.
Labor theory of property
The labor theory of property or labor theory of appropriation or labor theory of ownership is a natural law theory that holds that property originally comes about by the exertion of labor upon natural resources...
which says that though individuals have a right to acquire private property from nature, that they must leave "enough and as good in common...to others."
The phrase "Lockean Proviso" was coined by political philosopher Robert Nozick
Robert Nozick
Robert Nozick was an American political philosopher, most prominent in the 1970s and 1980s. He was a professor at Harvard University. He is best known for his book Anarchy, State, and Utopia , a right-libertarian answer to John Rawls's A Theory of Justice...
. It is based on the ideas elaborated by John Locke
John Locke
John Locke FRS , widely known as the Father of Liberalism, was an English philosopher and physician regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers. Considered one of the first of the British empiricists, following the tradition of Francis Bacon, he is equally important to social...
in his Second Treatise of Government. Locke's ideas of self-ownership
Self-ownership
Self-ownership is the concept of property in one's own person, expressed as the moral or natural right of a person to be the exclusive controller of his own body and life. According to G...
allow a person the freedom to mix his or her labor with natural resources
Natural Resources
Natural Resources is a soul album released by Motown girl group Martha Reeves and the Vandellas in 1970 on the Gordy label. The album is significant for the Vietnam War ballad "I Should Be Proud" and the slow jam, "Love Guess Who"...
, originally common property, thus making it their private property
Private property
Private property is the right of persons and firms to obtain, own, control, employ, dispose of, and bequeath land, capital, and other forms of property. Private property is distinguishable from public property, which refers to assets owned by a state, community or government rather than by...
. Locke concludes that people need to be able to protect the resources they are using to live on, their property, and that this is a natural right. Nozick used this idea to form his Lockean Proviso which governs the initial acquisition of property in a society. Like Locke, Nozick believes in self-ownership and thus is a libertarian
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
. But in order for his ideas of ownership of property to get off the ground and be cogent, he devised the criterion to determine what makes property acquisition just, which is the proviso. The proviso says that though every appropriation of property is a diminution of another's rights to it, it is acceptable as long as it does not make anyone worse off than they would have been without any private property.
Locke's proviso has been used by geoists and socialists
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
to point to land acquisition as illegitimate without compensation. In geoism (Georgism), the possession of land is proper only so long as the market rent is paid to the relevant community. If a plot of land has a positive rent, that implies that there is not land of similar quality freely available to others.