John Locke on Toleration

Updated Thursday, 16th July 2015

This short animation, narrated by Aidan Turner, explores persuading people to change their beliefs by force.

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Is it possible to persuade people to change their beliefs by force? John Locke thought not. He believed that no threat can persuade anyone to believe something which they think is false. They might say they believe in your god to save themselves from torture or being burnt at the stake, but you won’t change their actual beliefs that way. We can’t just choose what we believe as a matter of convenience.

General philosophising

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