Stanford Humanities Center
Claire Rydell Arcenas is a PhD candidate in the Department of History at Stanford University. Her research and teaching interests include the intellectual, political, and cultural history of the United States.
SHC Project
Inventing an American Political Tradition: How John Locke Became "America’s Philosopher"
Arcenas' dissertation, “Inventing an American Political Tradition: How John Locke Became ‘America’s Philosopher,’” traces the changing reception of the English philosopher John Locke in American thought, culture, and politics from the eighteenth century to the present. Through a reconsideration of Locke’s influence in this country, Arcenas offers a new interpretation of how Locke and his writings have informed a wide range of educational, political, moral, economic, and religious attitudes, ideas, and actions in unexpected ways.
