Who Is Thomas Hobbes Leviathan

565 Words3 Pages

In Leviathan, Hobbes argues that peace and unity are achieved through the creation of a commonwealth. An authoritarian government that the people choose to submit due to fear of what happens if the government did not exist. The first part of the book is called “Of Man.” In this part, Hobbes describes the nature of man as a perpetual state of war where every person has the right to do everything they wish since everything can be said that is done due to self-preservation. This leads to conflict and war. This creates a horrible reality so people, seeking peace, decide to create a “Leviathan,” a big government that has absolute power and will regulate every aspect of the lives of the subjects. The second part of the book is about the creation of this government. …show more content…

Once the government is decided, when most of the people agrees, a covenant is created where they form part of that government. Once it is created, the government cannot be changed in any way. The government cannot commit injustice so it cannot be accused of commuting injustice. The government does everything it needs to create peace. In the rest of the second part, Hobbes talks about laws, rights, religion, taxation, forms of succession, what the people can and cannot do. On the third part of the book, Hobbes talks about the Christian Commonwealth. He talks about which scriptures can be trusted and how a person that claims divine revelation cannot be trusted because this would bring chaos and the imminent destruction of the

Open Document