Hobbes’ State of Nature: Human Behavior and the Case for Absolute Sovereignty Introduction Thomas Hobbes, writing during the turbulence of the English Civil War, developed a radical and systematic theory of political authority rooted in his conception of human nature and the anarchic condition he termed the "state of nature." His seminal work, Leviathan (1651), … Continue reading How does Thomas Hobbes’ conception of the state of nature inform his understanding of human behavior, and in what ways does it justify the necessity of an absolute sovereign for the establishment of social order and political authority?
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How does Hobbes’s conception of political obligation emerge from his understanding of human nature and the social contract, and in what ways does it justify absolute sovereignty as a necessary condition for civil peace and political order?
Hobbes’s Conception of Political Obligation and the Justification of Absolute Sovereignty Introduction Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679), one of the seminal figures in early modern political philosophy, sought to provide a scientific and secular foundation for political authority and obligation. Writing amidst the turbulence of the English Civil War, Hobbes developed a theory of political obligation rooted … Continue reading How does Hobbes’s conception of political obligation emerge from his understanding of human nature and the social contract, and in what ways does it justify absolute sovereignty as a necessary condition for civil peace and political order?