Preservation of mankind is the law of nature established by Hobbes, Locke, and Rousseau. By conforming to this law, man enters into an agreement, developing the social contract. The social contract is a theory that view's the foundation of morality being founded solely on uniform social agreements that provide the best interests of those who make the agreement. It is an agreement by which men are said to have discarded the "state of nature" in order to develop the society in which they now live. Even though the power of the ruler is accumulated from the people, the monarch has absolute power.
Hobbes assessment of the original state of nature is one that would exist if no common power or governing authority was present in society to execute and enforce laws that hinder societies desire to partake in deviant behaviour. When assessing Hobbes's work it must be taken into account that the majority of his work was written during the English civil war and that this may have contributed to his somewhat more sinister ideal of natural man compared to Locke's. Hobbes pursues the idea that mans desires are insatiable and when combined with the notion of living in an anarchistic or primitive way, it would be the survival of the fittest. A short and undeniably hard life. "If there be no power erected, or not great enough for our security, every man will, and may lawfully rely on his own strength and art, for caution against all other men," (Hobbes 1982 p.129). Furthermore, Hobbes argues that mankind is by nature very competitive which inevitably leads to jealousy, distrust, and hatred resulting in war. This does not mean consistent fighting and physical conflict, it is more so that an unremitting potential for war and the fear of it hangs in the air. This constant state of war or conflict is what Hobbes believes to be mans natural, original state of nature.
