"And the life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short". Hobbes" famous words in the Leviathan about the condition of mankind in the state of nature reverberate down the centuries, communicating as they do a keen sense of the fragility of the social bond that separates us from that desperate condition. When the breakdown in central authority in England left individuals uncertain as to where political legitimacy lay, Hobbes" political narrative provided us with prescriptions to revolve the "disorders of the present times". Absolute sovereignty, preferably in the person of a monarch, who could not be divided against himself, and absolute obedience on the part of the state's subjects. The sovereign's remit even extended over the practice of religion, with obedience to his will being demanded in this area no less than in the political. At that instance the state of nature really did dictate the nature of the state, with absolutism being presented as a remedy to the all-too-human tendency to regress to a pre-social condition of the "warre of every man against every man". The Hobbesian nation state is designed to deal with the perceived inherently flawed mankind, rather than from proceeding from any idealistic motive.
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. Hobbes" model of human nature precludes him from seeing anything worth preserving from the pre-social state. Without curbs on his behavior, the individual in the state of nature, no matter what his powers, is condemned to a life that is "solitary, poor, brutish, and short". The commonwealth is pictured as dominated by their appetites, a state of affairs that inevitably leads to conflict over resources with the rest of their neighbors. Although more powerful individuals might make short-term gains, no one is ever powerful enough to protect him or herself, and in resources they have gained in conflict with others, indefinitely.
Thomas Hobbes Thomas Hobbes was born in 1588 in London. ... Hobbes became interested in a monarchy-, which is a rule by a king or a queen. ... First, Hobbes believed that all people did something for a reason. ... Thomas Hobbes believed that everybody was so materialistic that everything happens by an impulse. ... Hobbes had some good points but he answered them with irrational decisions. ...
It can also be seen in the writings of Thomas Hobbes. ... In his book Leviathan, Thomas Hobbes spends a great deal of time examining human nature and how he thinks humans would act without society, government, or a code of moral values (Thomas Hobbes). ... An additional philosophy of Thomas Hobbes was that when there is no control, there is no justice. ... This ties into the belief of Thomas Hobbes that, even though thought to be good, all men are born with inherent evil. It is debated that Thomas Hobbes" philosophies were false and unnecessarily pessimistic. ...
Thomas Hobbes Thomas Hobbes was one of the first Western Philosophers that the world had seen. ... Hobbes was born in 1588 in Malmesbury, Wiltshire. ... Hobbes also said "that no man should give up self-assertion". ... "Thomas Hobbes". ... Thomas Hobbes. 15 Oct. 2000. ...
He was born in London, England, in 1588 and goes by the name of Thomas Hobbes. ... Hobbes ideas of the purpose of government is somewhat similar. ... Thomas Hobbes on the other hand assumed that humans were devious devils that would do what ever they could in their power to make life better for themselves. ... Hobbes presumes that democracy would never work. ... In conclusion, John Lock and Thomas Hobbes are philosophers who have different views of how a government should be organized and ran. ...
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 was a Realist who believed the purpose of the state was to protect the security of the state and to protect civil society from chaos and anarchy. ... Hobbes felt that the social contract was between the people of the state, it was designed to maintain order. ... Justice to Hobbes was whatever the sovereign said was the law and it was to be followed. Hobbes understanding of human nature was a very negative one. ... Because of his view of how nasty life is without the state, Hobbes subscribes to a very authoritarian version of government. ...
Political Philosophies of John Locke & Thomas Hobbes English philosopher Thomas Hobbes is now widely regarded as a truly great philosopher of the 17th century. ... These, along with Hobbes" other famous political writings have been collected in "The English Works of Thomas Hobbes" (11 volumes) and "Thomae Hobbes Opera Philosophica Quae Latina Scripsit Omnia" both edited by Molesworth. Hobbes" main quest was to construct a civil political system that would not come to a demise from within. ... "The condition of mere nature", is the term used by Hobbes to describe this state of perfectly...
State of Nature Within Hobbes's state of nature he believes each human being acts only for his own good, thus human beings are not naturally fit for society, for they will inevitably fight for the resources, that Hobbes views as scarce (a concept that is still adhered to, to-day) and so by installing the idea of scarce resources, Hobbes can justify the argument that self-interest will lead to competition. ... Critics of the "state of nature" like Robert Filmer have argued; "indeed if such a multitude of men should be created as the earth could not well nourish, there might be cause for...
