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John Locke and Thomas Hobbes are some of the most influential philosophers. Their works have impacted the ideas of society, government and the nature of men. The most obvious similarity between these two men is that they were both contractarians, meaning that they believed there was a mutual agreement among people in a society that allowed them to work together in order to improve their way of life. Both of these men valued this idea greatly as it is a major idea behind much of their philosophical ideals, but they have contrasting visions on the nature of men and how their nature effected the social contract. Hobbes has a pessimistic view on life, believing that men live to benefit themselves and simply wish to dominate or destroy others. Locke views men as a a individual governed by reason and logic. He believes that people desire to coexist as they all mutually benefit from it. Although these two men are both contractarians, this view on man has made large differences between their ideals, even though they are originally based off the same ideas. In fact, one could make the argument that they contrast each other in this sense. We have the pessimist, Hobbes, and the optimist, Locke.

Hobbes holds a strong ideal that life of a man is “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short”. He believed that men are selfish creatures, acting for their own needs instead of working together. Hobbes believes that everything that governs a man’s actions is endeavour. We do things that will only benefit ourselves. He believe the reason people act like this is because the nature of men is one of constant fighting. It is simply every man for himself and in this world he must provide for his own and himself by his own ability, but in this world there...

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...st each other a great deal. They do this because they have very different views on the nature of man, with Hobbes being a pessimist and Locke being an optimist. These two different view has a major impact on how they build their theories on the social contract and the state of nature, but Locke’s views are more fitting for the world we live in. They appeal to humanity much more as they represent for the kindness and social aspects of human nature. They acknowledge that people can be capable of both great acts of evil and good. Hobbes viewsJohn Locke and Thomas Hobbes are some of the most influential philosophers. Their works have impacted the ideas of society, government and the nature of men. The most obvious similarity between these two men is that they were both contractarians, meaning that they believed there was a mutual agreement among people in a society that