ABSTRACT
This chapter explains that Locke's 'civil perspective' provides a way to highlight the differences between Locke and Proast, because Proast's outlook is devoid of any such perspective altogether. From the time of the Two Tracts on Government, Locke was confronted, in England, with the reality of a civil society in which individuals were fundamentally divided by religious belief, but in which these individuals also needed to secure public agreement on the terms of their coexistence if civil society itself was to be possible. It is the 'civil perspective' that connects Locke to more recent developments within the liberal tradition, not least to John Rawls's account of political liberalism. Several aspects of Locke's political philosophy give rise to what we might call his 'civil perspective'. The 'civil perspective' refers to the position which protagonists in public debate ought to adopt in their engagement with each other if they wish to reach mutual agreement and understanding on public matters.
