Gentlemanly Virtue and Social Duty

The treatise is primarily aimed at educating the 'gentleman's calling,' with Locke asserting that if gentlemen are 'set right' by education, they will 'quickly bring all the rest into order.' He links proper upbringing to service to one's country.

Locke argues that the gentleman's calling is most to be taken care of, as proper education of that rank will bring all others into order, and he frames publication as a service to his country.

The chapter emphasizes that a gentleman should study virtue, civil law, and history to be serviceable to his country, and that writing letters well is a social necessity.