Thomas Hobbes

1588-1679

Major works of Thomas Hobbs:

The Elements of law: Natural and Politic (1642)

A Minute or First Draught of the Optiques (1646)

Leviathan (1651)

Hobbes Life in a NutshellThomas Hobbes was born in 1588 in Wiltshire, England. When Hobbes was 15 he began his intellectual study at Oxford. 5 years later he began tutoring the son of a noble family on a very intense study in Greek and Roman classics. When he began traveling abroad he discovered new radical ideologies of people like Galileo. These people began to influence Hobbes thinking. After his first trip he changed him studies to Classical. This is when Hobbes embarked on a new writing journey in philosophy and politics and began to astound people with books such as: The Elements of law: Natural and Politic (1642), A Minute or First Draught of the Optiques (1646), and Leviathan (1651). HE continued on his travels, writing books, and tutoring. King Charles the second loved Leviathan so much that he decided to pay Hobbes just for his knowledge. Due to the fact that Leviathan stirred up so much controversy Hobbes was not in favor with a lot of people. Parliament prompted a bill in which Atheism became illegal. A lot of Hobbes writings would go against the views of parliament. Therefore he was told that he was not allowed to write about politics or religion anymore. So he spent out his last days writing about himself and working on translations of other popular books. He later died in 1679.

1. Difference of mannersa. Man desires power, possessionsb. Will never cease, until death

2. Natural condition of mankind as concerning to their happiness and miserya. All man was created close to equal enough that even if we are weaker, we can still take from one another through conspiring with other like-minded people.b. If 2 men want the same thing, and only 1 can have it, they are enemiesc. 3 principle causes for fighting

i. Competition – Invade to acquire thingsii. Distrust – To defend what’s “ours”iii. Glory

d. It’s in our nature to be this waye. It will continue unless there are rules and laws put in place

i. These laws can’t exist without a “ruler” ii. Peace only exists due to a fear of death, or a desire for comfort in what we already have

Summary of Text

3. 1st and 2nd laws of naturea. Right of nature

i. Every man has a right to use their owe power, however they choose, to preserve their own natureii . Because every man has a right to everything, for his own preservation of life, including killing others, no one can be secure that they are safe at any timeiii. So every man should WANT peace, unless it’s impossible, then they should seek out every possible resource, including fellow men, to aid in his own personal war

1. To seek peace and follow it….by all means we can to defend ourselves

iv. 2nd law: Man should be willing, when others are, to lay down his right to everything and be content to treat others as he would like to be treated. So long as every man has a right to everything, there can be no peace. But if there are others that are NOT willing to be at peace, he cannot as well, or he’d fall victim to being easy prey.v. So it’s in our nature to desire things, pursue them, and defend them from others, even in times of peace.

1. Do unto others, what you would have done to you.

4. Causes, Development, and definition of a Commonwealtha. Men live together in a commonwealth for self-preservation without having constant warb. Law of nature goes against our natural desire, so we need an authority figure to “scare” us into following it.c. Joining together doesn’t actually deter war, but makes the group seem more powerful and can even encourage them to invade smaller groups.d. Large groups aren’t necessarily better than small ones

i. Differing opinions on how to use their strengths will weaken the group. i i . When there is no common enemy for the group to fight, they will fight each other

e. If we (the commonwealth) could get the group to agree to follow the laws of nature, without a ruling power, then we could have done that to every individual and therefore wouldn’t have needed to group up in the 1st place.

5. Function of the Sovereign Representativea. Responsible for the safety of the peopleb. Without a sovereign representative, the commonwealth is dissolved and man returns to a state of war with every other manc. Has a duty to educate his people about the reasons for ruling and his “laws” to maintain their order and safetyd. The definition of “good laws” – Laws needed for the people. Not meant to bind them from action, but to guide them away from hurting themselves or others due to their natural desires

i. The example he uses is a row of hedges to keep travelers on a set path

e. Severe punishment should be reserved for those crimes that are the most dangerous to the publicf. Leniency is necessary to rule.

i. Punish the leaders of a revolution, not the swayed masses that followed.

g. Encourage and reward those who serve the commonwealth and it’s interests

i . This will encourage others to follow

Main points from text

1. It is in the nature of man to desire power and possessions. This is inherent in man and is the reason for war.

“if any two men desire the same thing, which nevertheless they cannot both enjoy, they become enemies”

ii “In the nature of man, we find three principal causes for quarrel: first, competition; secondly, distrust; thirdly, glory.”4

2. Man should turn themselves over to a greater power in order to ensure their own safety from war.

“I authorize and give up my right of governing myself to this man, or this assembly of men, on this condition, that you give up your right to him and authorize all his

actions in like manner.”

3. The Sovereign Representative is responsible for the safety of his people through education and laws

“the use of laws, which are but rules authorized, is not to bind the people from all voluntary actions but to direct and keep them from hurting themselves by their own impulsive desires, rashness, or indiscretion; as hedges are set not to stop travelers, but to keep them in their way.”

Context

1.Leviathan was written during the English Civil War while Hobbes was in Paris.

2. Its name refers to a biblical monster

3. It’s basically a social contract of how man should live with each other, why they need a common ruler, and the guidelines to how the ruler should lead

4. Common themes of writing during Hobbes time include Descartes Discourse on Method and other mathematically analytical style of thinking

Subtext

a. Hobbes has two intended audiences here, the English monarchs and their subjects

b. His intent was to explain to the English people, based on man’s inherent nature, why they had a civil war and why they need to accept a monarch to lead them to prevent further wars

c. He also subtly explains to the monarch his role in governing the people, through laws that are “good”, not through punishment and abuse

d. Evidence of this comes from the beginning of the text where it is explained that Hobbes was stirred by “grief for the present calamities of my country”

Critique

a. Hobbes ideas on man, the laws of nature, development of commonwealths, and the necessity of a sovereign representative are academically soundi. Hobbes uses a step by step, almost chronological build-up of

logic on man to explain his theory of a social contractii. It is evidenced that man, since the beginning of recorded

history, has been at war with others for the 3 reasons he states (Competition, Distrust, and Glory)

III. His explanation of the Right of Nature corresponds with what we see in nature. All creatures use their own power to preserve

their own life, including killing others.

B. One critique of Hobbes theory that “Nature has made men so equal in the faculties of the body and mind that, though there be found one man sometimes stronger in body or of quicker mind than another, yet, when all is reckoned together, the difference between man and man is not so considerable that one man can claim for himself any benefit to which another may not put forward a claim as well as he.”

I. It’s difficult to agree that if a man is stronger than another, that other has the knowledge to overcome him

II. How could a group of men in a commonwealth then agree to turn over themselves and their ability to survive alone (or in the group) to one man, if they are inherently made the same as he?

C. Hobbes states that the second law of nature roughly means “do unto others, what you would have done to you.”

I. Perfect in theory, but there would never be murder, or deceit, or any crime if this were true

II. As he explains later in his definition of commonwealth, if the group agreed to follow the laws of nature, without a ruling power, they wouldn’t have needed to become a group in the 1st place

Critique cont…

1. What does this author have to tell us about being human in the modern age

Thomas Hobbes says that men, in a state of nature, without any form of civilized government, are in a war of everyone against everyone. Without any sort of government, life of man would be solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short. Man is naturally selfish and craves power, but for there to be peace and order in the world, he tells us we should place one man or group of men in charge; one man or a group of men to have all the power. The only reason we conform to an organized society and agree not to harm another person is to protect ourselves from being harmed by other people. The social contract was formed because of the constant fear of death.

2. Where do we see these ideas today in our own world? In our own lives?We see this today in our own government and governments throughout the world. There is usually one person or group of people, whether it be a president, a king or queen, a dictator, or even an emperor, that holds all the power in a sovereign state. This head of state has the authority over all the citizens. He or she must make laws and rules to keep peace and order among its people. In our country today we see this with the President of the United States and Congress. Thomas Hobbes also believed that because we live with a constant fear of a violent death that we have the right to defend ourselves whenever necessary. We see this in our own world and our own lives today with our second amendment right to bear arms.

Now that you have an understanding on Hobbes life answer the following:

1. Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes is considered one of the most influential examples of the social contract theory. Explain how the United States and other powerful countries have implemented the ideas and theories of Hobbes into their constitutions.

2. Hobbes had a pessimistic view on human nature stating that humans are naturally selfish, and without order we would live solitary, brutish, and short lives. Discuss how having a social contract and organized government helps keep peace and order in our society today.

3. One of Hobbes’ strongest theories is that the power of a whole nation should be put into one person or a small group of people. Do you think this makes society more corrupt since it is against our human nature or do you think it works and helps society become successful? Why or why not?

1. Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes is considered one of the most influential examples of the social contract theory. Explain how the United States and other powerful countries have implemented the ideas and theories of Hobbes into their constitutions.

AnswerWe, the people of the United States, elect our government officials who put these ideas and rules into effect. Thomas Hobbes says that we should put one person with power in charge or a small group of people. Here in the

United States we actually have both. We elect one person as President of the United States to run our country. We also have Congress where we can elect

officials. Although we’re placing all the power within a select number of people, the citizens of the country control who gets elected. Hobbes

believed that the world would turn into chaos if there was no centralized government and now, thanks to him, all countries of the world have a

functioning government so mankind can’t all have power.

2. Hobbes had a pessimistic view on human nature stating that humans are naturally selfish, and without order we would live solitary, brutish, and short lives. Discuss how having a social contract and organized government helps keep peace and order in our society today.

AnswerUnder the social contract, the government’s duty is to protect and serve

its people. Rules are made for a reason. There are reasons that it’s illegal to lie, cheat, steal, and kill other than the fact that it’s morally

wrong. It simply keeps everyone safe if you don’t do them. The President, monarchs, etc. make rules and laws so that the citizens will be safe. Although not everyone always follows rules, the majority of

people do and that’s how society functions so well.

3. One of Hobbes’ strongest theories is that the power of a whole nation should be put into one person or a small group of people. Do you think this makes society more corrupt since it is against our human nature or do you think it works and helps society become successful? Why or why not?

AnswerIt is corrupt in the sense that humans are naturally selfish and we naturally crave power. The average man wants all the power for

himself and to keep his own family safe. Although the social contract keeps order, for the most part, there’s always going to be those rule breakers; the ones who break the law and ruin it for everybody. No

matter how successful a government or a society can be because of a social contract, it will always be corrupt because it is against our

human nature and not everyone agrees all the time. We see it a lot today. Not everyone is going to agree with what the President says or does, no matter who the President is. Not everyone is going to agree with court hearings and their verdicts. Not everyone is going to agree

that the grade they got is the grade they deserve. Because of all of this uncertainty, there will always be corruption within a society.

René Descartes

1596 - 1650

Three Major works by Descartes:

1.Discourse on Method (1637)

2.Meditations on First Philosophy (1641)

3. Principles of Philosophy (1644)

Descartes Life in a Nutshell René Descartes was a French mathematician and philosopher, born on March 31, 1596 in La Haye, France, and deceased in the Netherlands on February 11, 1650. His father was a council member in the Parliament of Brittany, France, and his mother died before he could reach the age of one. Although he was sent to live with his maternal grandmother, his father still wished the best education for his son, and Descartes was sent the the Jesuit college La Flèche, a prestigious military school, where its 1,200 men students were taught mainly the “mathematical arts” of rhetoric and logic, but also poetry, music, acting, horse-riding and fencing. He then spent four years in the University of Poitiers, where he earned a Baccalaureate in Law at the age of 22. Pursuing his education further as a well-rounded man, Descartes added medicine and theology to his fields of knowledge. He then decided to study something different than courses taught by others, and began travelling to Northern Europe, living 15 months in the Netherlands, learning about himself and others in what Descartes calls “The book of the World.” During his travels, the mathematician also furthered his knowledge in mathematics and geometry by learning and teaching, and invented a universal method of deductive reasoning, which while based on mathematics, is applicable to all sciences. This method was later explained and formulated in his Discourse on Method, published in 1637.

During his time, Descartes was considered mainly a great mathematician, introducing to the world Carthesian Geometry. His rational dualism, believing that mind and matter are separate, earned him the dislikes of the Christian Church, which condemned his work on religion. However, today, we all remember him for the revolutionary philosopher he was, through his main philosophical works: Discourse on Method (1637) Meditations on First Philosophy (1641) and Principles of Philosophy (1644.) René Descartes is today considered to be the father of modern philosophy, not because of novel philosophical subjects, but by his approach of this art. Having a strong background in sciences and especially mathematics, Descartes applied his rational training to philosophy and religion, where his approach was to erase all that seems to be known, all preconceived ideas, in order “start fresh” with what is certain, seeing and understanding the essential.

Bio continued…

Summary of Text

Descartes emphasizes the importance of deductive reasoning to find a truth that is free from doubt. He found truth by employing skeptical doubt to his surroundings, and then to himself. He deduced that since he can doubt his existence, he must truly exist. Descartes believed in the necessity of breaking down an object of research and defining it first by it's most basic truths, until a larger, more complex system arises. This way, he knows the explanation of an object is derived from sound reasoning. He uses this basis to his philosophy as a system to approach understanding the natural world, and with it, he answers complicated questions with a rational thought process. His philosophical discoveries led to great advances in other disciplines like geometry, metaphysics, and in the development of analytical geometry.

3 Main Points

"The greatest advantage I derived from my study was this: although observing many customs which seem extravagant and ridiculous to us, are by common

consent accepted and approved by other great nations. I also learned not to hold on too firmly to those truths which I had accepted merely by example and custom. Thus I gradually liberated myself from many errors powerful enough to cloud our natural intelligence, and keep us in great measure from listening to reason. But after I had spent several years studying the book of nature, and in trying to gather some experience, I finally decided to make myself an object of study, and to use all the powers of my mind in choosing the paths I ought to follow. This endeavor was accompanied with greater success than it would have been had I never left my country or my books.”

1. Because he traveled and observed different cultures, Descartes realized that our differences in opinions of rational behavior don't constitute a different level of reasoning. Instead, it demonstrates that common truths are not truths at all, and this realization contributed to his philosophy that is based on doubting everything he'd previously understood as truth. Everything we ought to believe to be certain, we have the capability to discover with our own rational mind and he believed to find these truths, we had to question what made our reality true within our individual experience

2. Descartes understood the world in it's most simplest of forms, and in turn, he discovered ways to explain and understand the most complex phenomena. To truly decipher the meaning of something he believes that we need to find the simplest truth of the matter, and build upon it, and build upon that. In this way, everything known to man has to be connected in some way because one truth, can't exist without the other. This is Descartes method of reasoning- within seemingly unexplainable phenomena there are long chains of small undoubtedly truths waiting to be connected.

"The long chains of simple and easy reasoning's by which geometers reach the conclusions of their most difficult demonstrations, had led me to imagine that all things, to the knowledge of which man is competent, are mutually connected in the same way. And that there is nothing so far removed from us as to be beyond our reach, or so hidden that we cannot discover it, provided only we refuse to accept the false for the true, and always preserve in our

thoughts the order necessary for the deduction of one truth from another."

3. After Descartes concludes that since he's now found a sound method of reasoning, he is capable of trusting his mind to prove the existence of God and the soul. He understood that he needed to doubt his own perceptions because he wasn't perfect, the very fact that he knew how to doubt or even what doubt was meant that he wasn't perfect since there were things he couldn't know without first doubting. His ability to imagine something more perfect than himself, or God, must prove his existence because as an imperfect being, Descartes couldn't possibly have learned of his nature without his nature being true. So the existence of God is a truth built in to our own existence, because our existence wouldn't make sense without His.

"Next, from reflecting on the fact that I doubted, and that consequently my being was not wholly perfect (for I clearly saw that it was a greater perfection to know than to doubt), I was led to inquire from where I had learned to think of

something more perfect than myself; and I clearly recognized that I must hold this notion from some nature which was more perfect."

ContextDescartes was on a mission to discover truth, and to do this he focused on

studying different aspects of reasoning, a major theme of the Enlightenment. It's understandable that Descartes was so focused on finding undoubtedly truth because of his mathematical methods of reasoning, stemming from his extensive background in geometry. In addition, he studied both ethics and logic, so the combination of a love for moral reasoning and mathematics combined into a deductive method of understanding the world. Descartes was raised in a strict Catholic environment, and knowing this could give a greater understanding to his reasoning of proof for God's existence. Notably, he insists that if there is a God, he must be good in nature. It's also important to note the hesitation Descartes had for publishing Discourse on Method, because of his ties to the Catholic Church, and his philosophy which has to approach God's existence with doubt. This was seen as heresy in his time, because Catholics were supposed to be unquestionably faithful to God. He uses a scientific approach to explain something that was supposed to be based on faith, and it was dangerous to question the authority and reasoning of the powerful Catholic Church. His search for logic and reason is evident in his quest for a seriously solid foundation of knowledge, where no "truth" is left unquestioned, and nothing, even his own existence, is merely accepted.

Subtext

Descartes decided to publish because he thought it was important to share his methodology which could be useful for a variety of inquiries. Since he originally published in French instead of Latin, the writing was intended for the public. He knew he would receive criticism from the Church, but felt so strongly in his philosophy and in his scientific discoveries, that he risked persecution for the good of scientific advancement. Although he was a Catholic, he still found it necessary to question God's existence, and through realizing doubt is essential to knowledge, he found proof for his faith which was deemed heresy. But, Descartes discoveries were too important to the development of knowledge as he knew it, and clearly wanted to spread his methodology to the public for the good of society. Since he wrote in French, we know he meant to spread his ideas past the critical eyes of the clergy. He obviously found it important to move past the Church's methodology of acceptance of the one truth given to us by God, to a new age of giving the individual the right to define their own human experience by questioning their certainty in reality. Without these skills, Descartes believed we wouldn't advance because we weren't thinking in terms greater than the material world.

CritiqueWhere is the author plausibly correct? How so? Where can the author be

legitimately challenged? How so? Descartes is plausibly correct in his argument "I think therefore I am." There is no other way to prove our consciousness then our thoughts themselves. Descartes was a rationalist, and he believed that everything that was real was due to deductive and intellectual reasoning which takes place within our thoughts. He denies that our senses can accurately depict the world without our intellect to make sense of our perceptions. Therefore, our thinking processes must prove our existence. To argue against this would be to argue against your own existence and an argument against your own existence could never be sound. A criticism often given to Descartes philosophy is his circular reasoning on proving the existence of God. Descartes entire reasoning for a God is based on reason itself. God gave us reason so it must be true, and if there was no God there would be no certain, given knowledge. Without trusting his own reasoning, he can't sufficiently prove in God's existence, but without God's existence there would be no reason. The circular argument explains one questionable phenomena, God, with another questionable phenomena, our own ability to find certainty in our knowledge.

1. What does this author have to tell us about being human in the modern age?2.

2. Where do we see these ideas today in our own world? in our own lives

Descartes teaches us to test our reason, and question our reality so that we can produce a clear image of the true external environment without a clouded judgement. He says we might forget how much power we have over our understanding of reality because we forget our true nature living while in a material world. He says we are souls that are separate, but connected to our bodies, and that we are not perfect, like God, nor should we expect to be. These are some universal themes in his philosophies.

We see Descartes ideas very prevalent in today's school system. Not only are his philosophies studied in classrooms everywhere but he contributed advanced discoveries in mathematics and sciences. For example, the Cartesian coordinate system, created by Descartes, is the basis for Algebra and Geometry. In our personal lives, I believe even hundreds of years later, a lot of us could relate to his spiritual philosophies because they are universal themes, concluded based on sound reasoning. Another theme evident in Descartes academia was that he resolved problems with a scientific method, even questions of faith. This method of reasoning seems reliable to our generation because we grow up with the scientific method drilled into our memory from the beginning of our schooling. Descartes skeptical doubt is relatable to an educated generation.

Now that you have an understanding on Descartes life ask yourself a few questions…

1.Explain why Descartes decided to publish his work and elaborate on the ramifications that Descartes may face once his work was published.

2.Descartes published Discourse on Method despite his ties to the Catholic Church. Discuss in detail why his ties to the Church would create a hesitation in publishing this work.

3. Examine and explain Descartes’ thoughts after he discovered a “sound method of reasoning”. Specifically, what was his self-perception and his relationship to God?

Answer:Descartes thought it was important to share his methodology which could be useful for a

variety of inquiries. He found it important to move past the Church's methodology of acceptance of the one truth given to us by God, to a new age of giving the individual the

right to define their own human experience by questioning their certainty in reality. Without these skills, Descartes believed we wouldn't advance because we weren't thinking

in terms greater than the material world. However, Descartes knew he would receive criticism from the Church, yet he felt so strongly in his philosophy and in his scientific

discoveries, he would risk persecution for the good of scientific advancement.

1. Explain why Descartes decided to publish his work and elaborate on the ramifications that Descartes may face once his work was published.

2. Descartes published Discourse on Method despite his ties to the Catholic Church. Discuss in detail why his ties to the Church would create a hesitation in publishing this work.

Answer:Descartes philosophy was to approach God's existence with doubt. This was seen

as heresy in his time, because Catholics were supposed to be unquestionably faithful to God. He uses a scientific approach to explain something that was

supposed to be based on faith, and it was dangerous to question the authority and reasoning of the powerful Catholic Church. His search for logic and reason is evident in his quest for a seriously solid foundation of knowledge, where no

"truth" is left unquestioned, and nothing, even his own existence, is merely accepted.

3. Examine and explain Descartes’ thoughts after he discovered a “sound method of reasoning”. Specifically, what was his self-perception and his relationship to God?

Answer:Descartes discovered that he was capable of trusting his mind to prove the existence of God

and the soul. He understood that he needed to doubt his own perceptions because he wasn't perfect. The very fact that he knew how to doubt was meant that he wasn't perfect, considering that there were things he could not know without first doubting. He realized that his ability to imagine something more perfect than himself, or God, must prove his

existence because he was an imperfect being. Descartes couldn't possibly have learned of his nature without his nature being true. So the existence of God is a truth built in to our

own existence, because our existence wouldn't make sense without His.

Works Cited:

Knoebel, E. (1988). René Descartes, Discourse on Method. In The Modern world (4th ed., Vol. 3, pp. 20-30). San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.

"René Descartes". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 05 Sep. 2014<http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/158787/Rene-Descartes>.

René Descartes. (2014). The Biography.com website. Retrieved 07:52, Sep 05, 2014, fromhttp://www.biography.com/people/rené-descartes-37613.

"THOMAS HOBBES (1588-1679)." Thomas Hobbes. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Sept. 2014.

Williams, Garrath. "Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy." Hobbes, Thomas: Moral and Political Philosophy []. Lancaster University, n.d. Web. 07 Sept. 2014.