State of Nature and Thomas Hobbes - Essay Example

Hobbes believes in the natural ‘state of nature’. Only societies and governments stop this from being a constant state. This is a sort of fiction since Hobbes points out that this has never actually happened in history. However, it helps to explain why people in countries often suffer from mistrust, violence, and criminality. This ‘state of nature’ is central to Hobbes’ view of the world. The reason this is not a reality is that it is blocked by fear and reason. The reason is that man knows how to escape from the state of nature and this is how the natural laws are created which allow a man to live in peace.

Hobbes then develops his ideas on the ‘laws of nature’. This works against the destructive nature of the ‘state of nature’ and helps man to maintain peace and stability. These laws are instinctive to man and are obtainable through natural reason and philosophy. The first law is the law of peace which divides into seeking peace and the right to defend ourselves from violence to maintain peace. The second law is connected to peace and states that we give up certain rights, such as murder, to avoid continuous warfare. People mutually give up their rights and this becomes a contract, which is the foundation for moral obligations. The third law, therefore, requires us not just to make such contracts, but to respect and keep them. These first three laws are the essential way in which continuous war can be avoided. Hobbes then outlines several other associated laws which contribute to maintaining peace. All these laws can be summarised as avoiding actions that an individual would not want to be performed against themselves. God ultimately rules over these laws.

Hobbes then explores how the contracts work. Two different types of people can be involved in a contract – natural and artificial. Hobbes defines a natural person as one who uses their own words. An artificial person, rather, uses the words of others. A natural person is therefore similar to an author since he creates his own words. All men are in the state of nature natural and so they are authors of the contracts that they make. By entering into these contracts, natural people avoid the state of nature,e and their mutual entering into contracts means that they are unified by them. The contracts themselves are based on the words of others and so can be considered artificial. They represent the words of the natural men and so cannot be regarded as natural. This artificial person, the contract, symbolizes social unity. Read More