Poetic Emotion <em>versus</em> Truth: Russell’s Preference for Spinoza over Locke

Abstract

This article explores why Russell believed Spinoza to be a superior philosopher to Locke. The latter’s empiricism is closer to Russell’s epistemology than the former’s rationalism, and the superiority of the former’s metaphysic is dubious at best. This makes for an intriguing choice. Normative ethics is the most likely basis, but Russell did not believe that this area of inquiry should be considered part of philosophy.