Innate Ideas John Locke, a renowned 17th-century English philosopher, opposed the pre-existing belief in innate knowledge, such as that held by Descartes. Many of Locke's arguments begin with critiques of the views of philosophers on innate knowledge, notably Descartes. Therefore, a lot of The Essay. On his return from England, John Locke published An Essay Concerning Human Understanding as well as A Letter on. John Locke was an English philosopher who lived at the time.