Possessive Individualism, Property and Political Society in John Locke

In the present article I claim that there is a strong relationship between the conception of the individual that we hold and the way we understand our relationship with others, and more specifically, the way we conceive our political bond, that is, the ends or purposes that we claim to pursue while being part of a society or political community. Following this premise, I have examined John Locke’s political thought under the category of ‘possessive individualism’ as it was coined by C.B. Macpherson in his book The Political Theory of Possessive Individualism. This analysis was performed in order to disclose the conception of ‘political society’ proposed by Locke, as well as expose the limits that such conception imposes over our political life and understanding of citizenship.