LEVIATHAN

Geneblazo, Jasmin Abegail Tanglao, Zara Jean

Leviathan (1651)
The Matter, Forme and Power of a Common

Wealth Ecclesiasticall and Civil A book that concerns the structure of society and legitimate government, and is regarded as one of the earliest and most influential examples of social contract theory. In the book, which was written during the English Civil War, Thomas Hobbes argues for a social contract and rule by an absolute sovereign. Hobbes wrote that chaos or civil war situations identified with a state of nature and the famous motto Bellum omnium contra omnes ("the war of all against all") could only be averted by strong central government. It is often considered one of the most profoundly

MAJOR THEMES

Materialism
Strain that runs through Hobbes'

thought that, in contrast to essentialism, stressed the external world is known to use only through our senses, and as such we can only prove the existence of things we sense. In contrast to philosophers like Francis Bacon, Hobbes did not think philosophy

Essentialism
Aristotelian philosophy that

humans sense the external world through the "essences" of objects, which are qualities relating to sense. Hobbes believed this was false given that man's experience with the world is entirely subjective.

Utilitarianism
Philosophy that stressed that

morality and politics should seek to maximize the amount of good and minimize the amount of pain for men.

Egoism
Doctrine that individuals are

fundamentally driven by their own self-interest. This is a central tenet of Hobbes' thought, as men leave the state of nature out of selfinterest, and perform their moral and civic obligations for this reason as well

Rationalism
Often associated with

Enlightenment thought, the belief that truth should be based on solid reason rather than dogma or tradition. In its idealistic form, this preached the power of reason to further human knowledge.