Consensus or general agreement is a concept that is oft seen in law, it is when there is a meeting of the minds between two or more parties. In jurisprudence, consensus often arises as a legitimating devise, this is especially so when with regards to contractualism. Contractualism refers to the social contract theory and the idea that without consent, no one can be subjected to the political power of another. Many works about the social contract have been produced but this essay will focus on Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan and John Locke’s Second Treatise of Government.
In Hobbes’ Leviathan, the state of nature is a place where, due to the equality between humans, chaos reigns. Everyone had the power to do what was needed in the preservation of
In Hobbes’ Leviathan, the state of nature is a place where, due to the equality between humans, chaos reigns. Everyone had the power to do what was needed in the preservation of