Locke's Second Treatise is a very careful work of political philosophy: Locke justifies every argument he makes through connecting it to either previously published philosophy, the political circumstances of England at the time of his writing, or the divine law he understands to be laid out in the Bible. The structure of his arguments reflects a similar commitment, and he employs logos as a literary device to appeal to the reader's sense of reason. From the very opening of the book, in Chapter 1, Locke makes the logical structure of his philosophy explicitly clear:
It having been shewn in the foregoing discourse,
1. That Adam had not, either by natural right of fatherhood, or by positive donation from God, any such authority over his children, or dominion over the world, as is pretended:
2. That if he had, his heirs, yet, had no right to it:
3. That if his heirs had, there being no law of nature nor positive law of God that determines which is the right heir in all cases that may arise, the right of succession, and consequently of bearing rule, could not have been certainly determined:
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In these opening paragraphs, Locke starts with the very basics: he establishes what has already been proven about human nature and natural law in the Bible, ensuring that, in readers' minds, his own philosophy is built upon the most solid of foundations. The rest of the Second Treatise is similarly structured, with each new argument given a number that ensures the reader can follow how each of Locke's points builds off those that he has previously made.
