Thomas Hobbes wrote that life without government would be life "in a state of nature - solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short". He also thought uncivilized times, in times before government, there existed continual war with "every man, against every man". What has been argued for years is the question of man's state of nature. I believe in Hobbes theory that humans are basically selfish creatures. .
Man by his basic nature loves himself. It was necessary for the primitive man just to survive. Self-preservation is a basic instinct and, I believe basic instincts lead to a basic nature. "Survival of the fittest" comes to mind. After basic survival was mastered, then man was drawn to pleasure which is another basic instinct. One naturally seeks whatever pleases him, using whatever tools to achieve this goal - power, ambition, greed, lust, even taking from others. "Taking care of number one!" also comes to mind.
Therefore man's basic nature, I believe, is self love driven to seek whatever makes him happy, however he can, unless constraints are in place- constraints such as morals, religious beliefs, social consciousness, or government. This basic nature started as survival, but I believe the seeds still continue to exist. .
Some people would say this is a pessimistic attitude, but how can you not feel this way when you read the news. There is never a day when someone has not committed a "white collar" crime, or numerous numbers of people are killed. You perceive the theory of "every man against every man", as Hobbes stated, even with constraints/government in place. I fear to imagine our society without government. .
A good argument for my belief in man's basic nature would be Iraq. The United States invaded and destroyed their government. With no constraints in place, there was chaos. The people went wild, even looting and destroying their own museum. I supported the President in ending the regime of Hussain, however I was shocked the United States government did not have some kind of plan in place for civil order.
Thomas Hobbes Thomas Hobbes was one of the first Western Philosophers that the world had seen. ... The trip began a new chapter in Hobbes life, he began to publish books and his theories were starting to be written out into books. ... This book should Hobbes views on all the theories and ethical decisions. ... "Thomas Hobbes". ... Thomas Hobbes. 15 Oct. 2000. ...
Philosophers like Jean-Jacques Rousseau examined the causes of man's misery, while Thomas Hobbes explored why man has established political societies. ... Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Thomas Hobbes have theories on how the state of nature was before civilization emerged. ... Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Thomas Hobbes both believed that a society existed due to political regime. ... Thomas Hobbes first acknowledged this idea in his novel Leviathan written in the 1651. ... Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Thomas Hobbes's view on the natural state of man vary on several degrees. ...
Political Philosophies of John Locke & Thomas Hobbes English philosopher Thomas Hobbes is now widely regarded as a truly great philosopher of the 17th century. His world renown fame can be attributed to what has now become known as his "social contract theory". With this theory in mind, Hobbes concluded that we as a people should submit to and abide by a sovereign power with absolute authority. His theories and philosophies are conveyed in his major political writings such as "The Elements of Law, Natural and Politic" published in 1650, "Philosophical Rudiments Concerning Government and S...
According to Thomas Hobbes, man living in a state of nature which lacks sovereign will be living like a beast or wild animal in the jungle. ... To Thomas Hobbes, a state of nature is just simply a state of war where man is competing with another man in order to survive. ... To Thomas Hobbes, "A state of nature is a state of war" and not a state of peaceful co-existence as Locke puts it. To Thomas Hobbes, man is viewed in a pessimistic light by describing his life as "solitary, nasty, poor, short and brutish affair." How John Locke and Thomas Hobbes view the term "social contract" or governmen...
Thomas Hobbes and John Locke, two British philosophers, have spent a great deal of their lives thinking and arguing extensively on this subject. ... Using Hobbes' theories from The Leviathan and Locke's theories in the Second Treatise of Government to evaluate Hobbes' claim, the question posed by Hobbes will be answered by these two philosophers themselves. Hobbes introduced a theory that humans have a restless appetite to achieve power. ... (Hobbes, Leviathan 72) His theory of power is divided into two kinds, natural and instrumental. ... Locke also uses the theory about ...
Thomas Hobbe's Leviathan "And the life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short". ... Hobbes puts forward a theory of human nature, which has implications for our entire social system: The Hobbesian individual has a natural disposition towards anti-social behavior that must be checked for the public good. ... Such a transfer is considered by Hobbes to be unconditionally binding. ... Furthermore, the state of nature and the social contract are fictions passed off as facts; but, even to this objection, an answer might be made from within the bounds of his theory. ... Thomas Hobbe...
I would like to contemplate on this question by looking at the theories of John Locke and Thomas Hobbes. Thomas Hobbes and John Locke are two political philosophers; their theories were about the formation of the society and discussing the men in his natural state. ... If we take a look at Hobbes" theory about the natural state, that means the condition men were in before political government came into existence, is that people are at constant war, a war of all against all. ... Under Hobbes theory, people enter the society for the reason that, as they all feel vulnerable at the state of wa...
In Hobbes' work, "Leviathan," the reader is informed of his ideas and theories on the creation of a city-state in which its people are freed from the "state of nature." Hobbes' state closely follows the idea of the "bourgeois man," we can see evidence of this in the way he describes the roles of the citizens within his state. While looking at the way Hobbes' constructs his theories, we can look at the question of whether or not his bourgeois theories are a means for a sustainable and prosperous society. There are many scholars who have published their theories on whethe...