Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679)

Introduction;
Thomas Hobbes was born at westport England.He was a lawyer by
profession.
He left England during the civil war, migrated to France which was his
spiritual home.
Hobbes built up a systematic phelosophy of state,taking stand neither on
theology nor ontradition but on his study of human nature.
His Environment;
Hobbes lived at a time of great constitutional crisis in England,when the
Theory of Divine Rights of King was wehemently preached by Martin
Luther and supported by “Reformation Movement”
The idea of Divine Rights of King was actually against the domination of
church not against the subjects of the king.
Hobbes actually wanted order and authority,and therefore,explained
the doctrine of Social ContraCt and constructed a system of strong
sovereign authorithy.
BOOKS. Three are worth mentioning.
The Corpore Politico :(1640)
De Cive (1642)
The Leviathan (1651)
Political Thougths,Three great Traditions.
Political Thoughts can be divided into three great Traditions,
The First tradition is represented by Plato and Aristotle.It is the Rational
-Liberal tradition based on the concept of Reason and Nature.
This tradition views the state as a Natural Organism and views law as
the product of Reason,It also give birth to the theory of Natural Law.
It stresses that society and state must follow pattern of nature
supported by Reason.
The second Tradition developed mostly in 16th and 17th centuries,
and Thomas Hobbes is one of the greatest representatives in this
school of thought the traditionof Will and Artifice,
This Tradition views the state not as an organism but a Machine.
The society and state are not natural but artificial,and man-made.
It is not Nature and Reason but Will of manthat create the state and
mould it.
The Third Tradition of political Thought is the Historical Coherence
combining the two traditions discussed above.
This Tradition actually combines/reconciles Reason and Will.
as Rousseau General Will or Hegal Rational Will.It points out the historical growth
and evolution of the state.
Hobbes Spiritual Ancestry;
Hobbes borrowed much from previous thinkers, but he gave his own orientation
to their concepts.
He agreed with Machiavelli that man is selfish by nature but stressed that state
could transformed a man into a moral being,by the exercise of a master's rod.
Hobbes is indebted to Bodin for his concept of sovereignty but unlike
Bodin,impose no limitations of Divine, Natural.Constitutional or International Law
upon his sovereign.
Hobbes modified the Divine Rights Theory by rejecting the Divine
origin of the state and giving Divine Rights to the state instead of the
king.
He adopted the idea of the Contractual origin of the Social Contract
Theory but reject the idea of contractual obligations(for the ruler at
least),right of man and rule by concent which were considerd as
fundamental to the theory before him.
Hobbes tinged(linked) Collectivism with Individualism,materialistic
Rationalism, Hedonistic Utilitarianism(belief in pleasure as ultimate aim
of life) and Erastianism(state supremecy over the church).
• Hobbes, like Machiavelli subordinateed Ethics and Religion to Politics
and therefore,was called as the first prophet of Unlimted ,Absolute
Sovereignty.