Locke and Hansel

John Locke: The Playful Philosopher

Henry Oliver | Liberty Fund | 5th October 2026

Formal logic is no prerequisite for philosophy, which begins “in a curiosity of the world and a willingness not just to question it, but to test it directly. We become philosophical as we become interested in knowing the qualities and limits of the world and ourselves.” Locke’s writing shows him at play, testing ideas against experience. A child sticking his hand in a flame becomes a novice of philosophy (2,200 words)

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The Dark Political Wood

Philip A. Glotzbach | Persuasion | 6th October 2026

The moral tension at the heart of Hansel and Gretel lies with the children’s father, who is persuaded by his second wife that the only way to survive a famine is to abandon the children deep in the forest. The story’s ending sees him happily reunited with the children and displaces all the blame onto the stepmother. “This device is a rhetorical move that treats pressure as compulsion and influence as inevitability” (1,600 words)