[The Critic] The Meaning of Locke

A new book explores the English philosopher’s American afterlife.

America’s Philosopher: John Locke in American Intellectual Life. By Claire Rydell Arcenas. The University of Chicago Press; 265 pages; $29.99.

You can hardly fault John Locke (1632–1704) for never setting foot on US soil, even as Britain’s American colonies grew into…