Human Life as a State of Mediocrity in John Locke

The chapter investigates the distinctive traits of Locke’s idea of human life as a “state of mediocrity”, its genesis and evolution. This idea had ancient roots tracing back to the early Church fathers. It was widely accepted in the seventeenth century, when this state was generally equated with the condition of partial ignorance and imperfection characterizing humans’ life on earth. Locke developed this idea in an original way, in an account of the state of mediocrity that formed the core of his reflections on human life. Life was a time of mediocrity; death opened the way to the excesses of extreme misery and eternal happiness, according to individual merits and faults. Initially, Locke conceived of the middle state as one of intellectual mediocrity: the lengthy debate about scepticism, dating back to the early Church fathers, seems to have been his main source of inspiration in this first stage. Subsequently, he developed this idea insisting on the natural suitability of human beings to their mediocre state. The reading of Nicole and Pascal, who both heavily emphasized the catastrophic consequences of original sin on human nature, may have prompted Locke to redefine the state of mediocrity in more optimistic terms. Finally, the uneasiness that characterizes this state in the Essay suggests a partial rethinking of the human condition, which is now described by Locke as an imperfect state of insatiable desire. However, the perfect knowledge of morality attainable in this world redeems our mediocre state.