Locke’s Newtonianism and Lockean Newtonianism

I explore Locke’s complex attitude toward the natural philosophy of his day by focusing on (1) Locke’s own treatment of Newton’s theory of gravity and (2) the presence of Lockean themes in defenses of Newtonian attraction/gravity by Maupertuis and other early Newtonians. In doing so, I highlight the inadequacy of an unqualified labeling of Locke as “mechanist” or “Newtonian.”