Thomas Hobbes At the end of the ensanguined English Civil War, Hobbes wrote his book Leviathan, published in 1651. As he was witnessing the excessive violence and cruelty in his surroundings, he was made aware of the brutality that humans are capable of and developed a pessimistic view of the world. This translated into his belief that the State of Nature is a state of war where every person is against each other (80). Hobbes insists that such a condition results in a life of destitute because of the severe lack of morality and constant fear experienced by the members. Due to the terror-filled mode of being people are consistently in, no one is actually free. Their behaviour becomes uncontrollable, prohibiting amenities such as industries, …show more content…
There is no guaranteed safety for anyone. Although some may be physically or mentally stronger than others, all are capable of murdering one another; humans are created as equals. There is no point in making agreements with neighbors because not only are people`s words subjective to their current emotional state but it is not in anyone’s best interest to keep the accords or remain honest (84). He discusses the Right of Nature, which is essentially the right to do whatever one deems as an acceptable act committed in order to survive (79). The problem is that virtually anything can be labeled as fundamental for one 's protection. Because of this, it has the potential to become a right to unethical acts. However, the Law of Nature, which Hobbes believed to be revealed by God through human’s ability for extensive reasoning, condemns the destruction of human life while simultaneously affirming human self-preservation (80). It contains nineteen parts which revolve around seeking peace though justice and morality, as well as doing unto others as one would want to be done upon oneself (97). This is the same reasoning, along with the longing to escape perpetual fear, which drives people to form a …show more content…
In such a condition, people are able to pursue their own interests (Locke 2005, 3). Due to the restrictions imposed by the Law of Nature, which focuses on the preservation of humanity as well as their independence and equality, it is a peaceful place. No one is ranked above another because each person is God’s creation. Since no one has the right to take away what God produced and therefore owns, killing another human being is unacceptable (Locke 2005, 4). Locke did not think humans are good or evil because he viewed the human mind as a tabula rasa, meaning it is blank at birth and completely shaped by its environment. His belief was that the State of Nature has actually existed and will continue to as long as there are kings and queens governing independent communities (Locke 2005, 6). Right of Nature is an entitlement of all people; it is the right to live, the right to liberty, and the right to property, in respect to everyone else’s same rights. Infusing the resources provided by nature with one’s labour creates private property, but due to the Law of Nature, one cannot take more from nature than he can use, to make sure others have enough left. However, the State of Nature does not preserve people’s property.
The foremost aspects to consider from the Leviathan are Hobbes’s views on human nature, what the state of nature consists of, and what role morality plays. Hobbes assumes, taking the position of a scientist, that humans are “bodies in motion.” In other words, simple mechanical existences motivated solely to gain sati...
Machiavelli divides all states into principalities and republics, principalities are governed by a solitary figure and republics are ruled by a group of people. With Hobbes’ Leviathan a new model for governing a territory was introduced that can no longer be equally divided into Machiavelli's two state categories. Hobbes combines the concepts for governing principalities and republics into a new type of political thought that is similar to and different from Machiavelli. Hobbes, unlike Machiavelli, is on the side of the people and not the armed prophets. Hobbes believes that the function of society is not just merely living, but to have a safe and comfortable life. He believes that by transferring all rights to a sovereign the threat of the state of nature will be diminished. A sovereign elected will be able to represent and protect everyone equally, they are not a ruler of the people but a representative. The Leviathan differs from a principalities and a republics by establishing the institution of the commonwealth through the social contract.
A term paper contrived is only as good as the sources from which it is assembled. It is from these reservoirs of knowledge that the bulk of a paper is developed. That is why it is absolutely imperative that the qualities of these sources are immaculate and relevant to the subject matter. Given my subject matter, ethical obligations and violence, it is critical to note and record the viewpoint of different philosophical ethical theories through the writings of different philosophers. Excerpts form Thomas Hobbes’ The Leviathan and J.J.C. Smart in Ethics for the Modern Life, prove to be effective in both previously matriculated qualities. Both authors give arguments for different types of ethical theories that give some aspect of significant worth to my term paper topic.
1. First of all, John Locke reminds the reader from where the right of political power comes from. He expands the idea by saying, “we must consider what estate all men are naturally in, and that is, a state of perfect freedom to order their actions, and dispose of their possessions and persons as they think fit.” Locke believes in equality among all people. Since every creature on earth was created by God, no one has advantages over another. He makes a strong suggestion by saying, “that creatures of the same species and rank, should also be equal one amongst another, without subordination or subjection, unless the lord and master of them all should, by any manifest declaration of his will, set one above another, and confer on him, by an evident and clear appointment, an undoubted right to dominion and sovereignty.” For people to confirm the state of Nature, a law is set that obliges people to follow and consult it. The Law of Nature brings many things that need to be followed by each person. Locke describes the law’s consequences if not obeyed by saying, “the execution of the law of Nature is in that state put into every man’s hands, whereby every one has a right to punish the transgressors of that law to such a degree as may hinder its violation.” Every law is fair and equal to every person. As you have equal rights, you may also be punished equally if you don’t obey it.
His first assumption is that people are physically and mentally similar to one another, and this similarity means that “no individual has the capacity to overpower or influence another” (Hobbes). A flaw, however, that I realize in this assertion is that there do exist in society persons of deficient physical and mental ability. For example, people with severe physical or mental handicaps would not fare well in Hobbes’ state of nature because they would be easily dominated. Hobbes’ second assumption is that people generally want to protect their own lives, “shun[ning] death” (Hobbes). This proclivity for self-preservation does not translate to an innate malevolent nature of humans; however, it does imply that humans tend to be more indifferent towards each other than benevolent. I tend to agree with this second assumption because in my experience, individuals think of themselves in an elevated manner, and if someone does not agree with this view, the individual becomes offended. Individuals tend to judge others based on swift observations, dismissing others if they do not align with one’s personal preferences. The final assumption Hobbes asserts is that individuals have a penchant for religion. This penchant stems from the curious and anxious nature of individuals. Hobbes thinks that these aspects of human nature cause individuals to “seek out religious beliefs” (Hobbes) in order to quell the curiosity and anxiety that dominates their lives. In addition to these various normative assumptions regarding the state of nature, Hobbes outlines the right of nature, which is “a liberty right to preserve the individual in the state of nature” (Hobbes). In essence, this
We will give Hobbes’ view of human nature as he describes it in Chapter 13 of Leviathan. We will then give an argument for placing a clarifying layer above the Hobbesian view in order to account for acts of altruism.
People often think nature supports our value judgments or claims about the goodness of human life. People argue that God has intended for all things to be good, nature will lead us towards the ultimate good. Hobbes will argue differently about nature because nature causes scarcity among resources along with competition, distrust and glory which causes violence and conflict. Hobbes does agree with the fact that the state of nature does make us all equal. Hobbes is not talking about equality in the sense that God made all people equal but in the sense that we all have the ability to kill one another. Also nature causes all men and women to have self-preservation. .According to Hobbes, despite nature not supporting justice and the greatest good does not mean people can never live under a sovereign entity that implements laws and punishments. The sovereign implements laws through fear. When there is no sovereign, people will always live in a state of war. Since nature does not provide a foundation for us to live by, the sovereign has to create it through fear of a punishment of a violent death. Since there is no greatest
These are the reasons that I felt reading Hobbes' Leviathan could help me gain some understanding and insight into these issues. Hobbes' Leviathan: Analysis of its Impact on the Framing of our Democracy Thomas Hobbes' Leviathan, written against the backdrop of the horrors of the English Civil War, in the mid 1600's, is a discussion about the principles of man's basic need for peace, unity, and security, in both nature and civilization. Essentially arguing in favor of a sovereign monarchy, Hobbes writes in such a manner as to present these basic principles so they could apply to any political system, including that of a democracy. To achieve this, Hobbes presents several questions in this novel. What kind of being is man? What is the nature of man? What comprises a commonwealth that can successfully govern man? These are the pivotal questions presented in Hobbes' Leviathan. According to Hobbes, man is a creation of God not dissimilar to that of man manufacturing watches. Both have moving parts; a spring or heart to keep them alive, strings or nerves to hold them together, and wheels or joints to give motion to the whole body. But it is more than just this that Hobbes says makes up man. Man has, or at least should have sense, imagination, speech, and reason. Sense is an instrument for conception in man's mind. Without the senses, man cannot see the "Representation or Appearance of quality" (85). Imagination is the remembering of things once perceived by the senses, and the ability to compound different memories into one, as with compounding the sight of a man and a horse into that of a Centaur. Speech by far is "The most noble and profitable of all inventions", for speech is the means "Whereby men register th...
Locke theorizeds extensively on property, privatization, and the means an individual can use for increasing his property. Initially, in the state of nature, man did not own property in the form of resources or land. All fruits of the earth were for the use of all men,“and nobody has originally a private dominion, exclusive of the rest of mankind, in any of them, as they are thus in their natural state” (Locke 353). In this state, people could appropriate only what they could make use of. It was unfair for one person to take more than he could use because some of that natural commodity would go to waste unless another man might have made use of it for his own benefit (360). Locke felt that God gave the bounties of nature to the people of earth and they, by default, should treat these bounties rationally. This rationalistic theory discourages waste.
����������� Thomas Hobbes is an important political and social philosopher. He shares his political philosophy in his work Leviathan. Hobbes begins by describing the state of nature, which is how humans coped with one another prior to the existence of government. He explains that without government, �the weakest has the strength to kill the strongest� (Hobbes 507). People will do whatever it takes to further their own interests and protect their selves; thus, creating a constant war of �every man against every man� (Hobbes 508). His three reasons for people fighting amongst each other prior to government include �competition,� �diffidence,� and �glory� (Hobbes 508). He explains how men fight to take power over other people�s property, to protect them selves, and to achieve fame. He describes life in the state of nature as being �solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short� (Hobbes 508). Hobbes goes on to say that if men can go on to do as they please, there will always be war. To get out of this state of nature, individuals created contracts with each other and began to form a government.
I think human nature is mostly good. Man was made equal in nature. Humans are peaceful. Man is good until power and and materialistic ideals are introduced. Man is intelligent until they no longer think for themselves, and let the state do their thinking for them. According to Thomas Hobbes in the Leviathan when two men want the same thing but only one can have it, is when conflict arises and they become enemies. Man becomes corrupt when they gain power and means of acting on the power. In nature man is equal and free. Man can go about his business without depending on anyone or having anyone interfere. John Locke believes humans had the perfect freedom and equality in nature. No man has any more power than any other.
Hobbes believes that all men are equal insofar as that the weakest man has the power to kill the strongest man. Thus given that every man is vulnerable to any other man, all men have a very strong desire to escape the state where killing each other is acceptable, escape the state of nature. This can be done, simply put by endeavoring peace which coupled with not making war except to defend oneself, is the first law of nature (Leviathan 1, 14).
Thomas Hobbes wrote a book about his ideas called the Leviathan. In his book he argued that people were naturally cruel, greedy and selfish. He thought that if people were not strictly controlled, they would fight, rob and oppress one another. He believed society must be ruled by an Absolute Monarch.
Hobbes was a strong believer in the thought that human nature was evil. He believed that “only the unlimited power of a sovereign could contain human passions that disrupt the social order and threatened civilized life.” Hobbes believed that human nature was a force that would lead to a constant state of war if it was not controlled. In his work the Leviathan, he laid out a secular political statement in which he stated the significance of absolutism.
Hobbes wrote the Leviathan during the civil war where he had experienced horrendous visions of violence. “Thomas Hobbes lived during some of the most tumultuous times in European history -- consequently, it should be no surprise that his theories were thoroughly pessimistic regarding human nature.” This may support his view that he would rather have any higher authority rather than none no matter how corrupted the government actually is. He wrote that the people “should respect and obey their government because without it society would descend into a civil war ‘of every man against every man’.” However, this may have been the cause for a bias view. To elaborate, a war is an extreme depiction of the potential volatility in human nature. Therefore making one aspect of humanity seems pre-dominant.