Thomas Hobbes wrote part of his flagship, Leviathan, in 1651, at the height of the English Civil War. The political upheaval of the time, coupled with the utmost faith in the inherent rationality of the Age of Reason, inspired Hobbes’s first philosophical political-contracts, based on politics, and advocated a strong Monarchy with central power.
The historical context of Hobbesian writing
Writing in 1651, Hobbes’s approach to philosophy was consistent with other philosophies developed during the Age of Reason. The Age of Reason was the period considered in the West by Renes Descartes and developed during the seventeenth and tenth centuries (1). He moved away from the mysticism of the Middle Ages and sought a critique of existing institutions and assumptions using logic. But before political theories it was charged with the words of divine command, while the legitimacy of the ruler was often rooted in the imagined race from Adam and Eve Hobbes forever He was the first political philosopher since classical times to redefine political discourse in order to rationally base his arguments (2).
Thomas Hobbes Public Nature
Hobbes begins his great work by defining the operation of humanity: “…first of all, the general inclination of all men, the perpetual and restless desire for power, which ends only in death.” (3) He defined a completely egocentric man who was driven by desires and aversions. This view human nature left no place for ethics, as people acting for pleasure are entirely self-interested. Thus, without law and order, the people would be compelled to wage war against all.
Hobbes defined this perpetual chaos as the republic of Nature and described it thus: “No arts, no literature, no society, which is the worst of all, continual fear, danger of violent death, and the life of men.” solitary, poor, dirty, brutish and short” (3).
Without a central authority, the state was inevitable for two main reasons: one, that people were forced to compete with each other for resources; . The fear of being treated violently would compel them to respond violently to themselves, in which all men, for fear of being killed, carried out the process of killing themselves. (3)
Thomas Hobbes
Hobbes articulates the solution to this matter in the second natural law: and he will think it necessary for his own defense, to lay down this right to all things, and to be content with as much freedom as he would allow others in himself.
In essence, Hobbes in this law creates a framework of his social, in which people leave the freedom to harm others. in understanding all the others likewise. Of course, all contracts need an enforcer and, Hobbes argues, the only sure way to secure the stability of this New Covenant is to cede all liberties to one man, and give him absolute obedience in all cases of direct threat. one life (3)
With Hobbes’ understanding of the state of nature, this makes sense. If the will of each is at odds with all, and the freedom of all men to exercise their will leads to war against all, then it is fair to hope in > > “https://e-info .vn/tag/civil-war-battlefields”> civil war. But the perversity of the state of nature’s conditions is such that there is always in itself the peace of choosing, even at the cost of freedom.
Citations
1. McCormick, Matt. “Immanuel Kant”. Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 8/11/2010.
2. Williams, Garrath. “Hobbes: Moral and Political Philosophy.” Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 8/11/2010.
3. Uzgalis, Bibl. “Leviathan”. University of Oregon. 8/11/2010.
