Thomas Hobbes's View Of Nature Shape His Political Theory

How does Hobbes’s view of nature shape his political theory? Political theories make suppositions about nature and/or natural laws. These boundaries (including the behaviors of the people within it) shape actions and decision-making, and the rules of nature thusly form the foundation of the ideology. It is prudent to analyze in-depth this basis for the moral and political philosophy of the great thinkers. The assumptions must make sense if the overall theory of thought built upon this foundation is to hold up. In Leviathan, Hobbes makes a few key assumptions about human behavior in the natural world – namely that all men are equal, desire for what is best for oneself, and have the right to do all things in the preservation and improvement of life – in the “the state of nature”. Upon this, he builds his subtractive …show more content…
This is the “creature” formed by the following covenant: “I Authorise and give up my Right of Governing my selfe, to this Man, or to this Assembly of men, on this condition, that thou give up thy Right to him, and Authorise all his Actions in like manner.” The ruler can take three forms. It can be a DEMOCRACY, under the rule of all; an ARISTOCRACY, under the rule of a part; or a MONARCHY, under the rule of one. Of these, the superior choice is the MONARCHY, as the monarch’s best interest is the same as the nation, can operate in any manner conducive to running a commonwealth, unfairly rewards fewer people, and have less trouble with succession. The creation of the LEVIATHAN is the last piece of Hobbes’s puzzle of contracts: the way to enforce the fulfillment of the contract. With knowledge of the LEVIATHAN’s absolute power (granted to him by God), the act of following through with the contract becomes more conducive to gain and safety than breaking it could. In that manner, the tragedy of the commons becomes