The Role of Social Contract in Past Political Theories - Essay Example

Introduction The social contract is a philosophical theory or concept that defines the agreement between the government and human beings where the people and the government have different responsibilities and roles to play. The social contract concept is built on the platform that human beings must abandon their natural way of life, that is, the condition of being ungoverned and free in order to allow structure, order and protection to be introduced in the society (Hobbes, 1985). According to Hobbes (1588-1679) the rules that govern behaviour brings about morality and rationality amongst the people drives them to accept such rules. In this regard, the society must not live in a state of nature which leads to anarchy. Anarchy is considered as a state that makes life nasty, poor, shot and brutish because human conditions are characterised by scarcity, equality of need, limited altruism and human power essential quality. The state of nature is characterised by lack of technology, housing education, industry and farming which are relevant in making human condition relevant. In order to avoid the society from reverting to the state of nature, social contract plays an important role because people are guaranteed of their safety and protection and in order to keep agreements, people must rely on one another (Hobbes, 1985). The concept of social contract views the government as the only agent through which can be used to end anarchism (state of nature). In this regard, people or the society must be ready to forego personal freedom and allow the government to bring about structure and order by enforcing agreements and laws on the people. The purpose of this paper is to explore the role that the idea of social contract has played in past political thoughts. Previous political thoughts Before dwelling on the roles played by the social contract concept, it is imperative to explore some of the past political thoughts. One of the previous political thought before the advent of the social contract theory is that formulated by Socrates. Socrates argued that people have an obligation to obey the set rules and laws because such rules and laws shape the peoples ways of lives (Gauthier, 1990). According to Socrates, the rules that governed behaviour made it possible for people to marry and have legitimate children. Socrates viewed himself as the product of marriage between his parents which gave rise to a legitimate child. Additionally, Socrates held that it was through the governing laws that made it possible for him and many other citizens to acquire education and the proper care as a child. In this regard, Socrates attributed the success of life to the laws governing the people (Gauthier, 1990). Further, Socrates argued that there is no coercion between the city laws and the citizens. The reason for this is that once the city citizens mature, they can make important determination on whether to stay in the city or leave the city altogether, depending on their perception about the conduct of the city. Socrates suggested that by choosing not to leave the city, a person agrees to be bound by the city’s laws as well as any form of punishment that comes with the disobedience of the city laws. Socrates argued that this can be interpreted as a social contract between the city and its dwellers and therefore the city dwellers have an obligation to obey the contract. Such a contract was viewed by Socrates as implicit or inherent in the person’s choice. From his point of view, Socrates viewed the state as the only politically and morally important agent or entity through which structure and order in the city can be achieved and therefore people must show deep respect and allegiance to the state by obeying laws formulated by the government. The other previous political thought was explained in the Republic theory. In this theory, Plato argued that men have a strong desire to commit injustices. However, men try to avoid being treated unjustly by the other men. In this regard, Plato held that men are plagued by injustice acts and behaviours. In order to achieve justice, Plato suggested that covenants and laws must come into play in order to prevent men from engaging in unjust acts. In summary, Plato held that justice originates from a regulated soul that makes the just man happy. In this regard, the philosopher suggested that obedience to the laws and the state is one of the greatest instruments of justice. Obedience to the laws and the state requires a personal obligation in which a person foregoes his freedom and allows the state to bring about structure and order so that justice can be realized among all men. Modern concept of social contract The idea of social contract is a rather modern concept. The theory was advocated for by philosophers such as Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679). Hobbes argued that social contract is the underlying principle that forms the source of the good things. This means that people depend on the idea of social contract to better their lives. Further, Hobbes argued that social contract is the pathway through which people move from a hopeless state of life (state of nature) to a more conducive condition where people feel protected and secure. Hobbes held that in the state of nature, every person lives in fear of losing his life due to the increasing self-centred interests held by people. However, through social contracts, men can be able to bring sanity in their society by creating a civil society which through the enforcing mechanisms such as laws and rules, people can be made to abide by the laws the constitute the social contract. The state or the government is viewed by the philosopher as the most suitable sovereign authority that can be formed by the members of the society in order to enforce the conditions of the social contract in order to make life more bearable and protect the society members from reverting back to the state of nature. According to John Locke (1632-1704) human beings are prohibited from harming one another with regard to their possessions, liberty, health and life (Locke, 2003). Even though, Locke viewed the state of nature as a perfect condition for mankind, he argued that such a state can result into property disputes particularly when men begin to steal property that belongs to others. Property is the fundamental object upon which Locke lays the foundation for social contracts (Gauthier, 1990). The philosopher suggested that in order to avoid deaths arising from property disputes, a social contract is vital in establishing a civil government that brings sanity in the manner in which private property is governed. According to Locke, the desire to avoid war drives men to enter into social contracts in order to form a sovereign authority in which men abandon their ways of free lives and bestow their freedom rights on the civil government that enforces the laws and rules that govern the conduct of the society members. The role of social contract in past political theories From the social contract ideas postulated by political philosophers such as Hobbes and Locke, it is evident that social contract idea further argues for the concept of moral motivation advocated for by past political theories such as Socrates and Plato’s political theories. This is because the social contract theory seeks to explain the motivation behind the desire by the people to follow rules and laws rather than living in a state of nature (Gauthier, 1990). The social contract theory holds that people follow rules and laws because they bring sanity, structure and order which makes life more bearable and therefore breaking the rules undermines the well-being of the people (Gauthier, 1990). The moral motivation is the fundamental principal agued by past political theorists such as Socrates and Plato who suggested that people choose to be bound by the laws of the city or to be governed by a civil government formed by the society members in order to have better lives free from fear and full of protection (Gauthier, 1990). In this regard, everybody has an obligation to obey the laws because it yields to a common advantage. Hence, the social contract plays the role of furthering the idea of moral motivation as the main ingredient behind people obeying rules and laws. The second role played by the idea of social contract in past political theories is that it affirms the fact that justice is an important part and parcel of free human existence. According to the past political theory postulated by Plato, justice can only be achieved only when proper structures and order prevail in the society (Gauthier, 1990). In order to avoid injustices in the society, men must choose to submit to an authority that governs and regulates the conduct of all men. The idea of social contract affirms the need for such an entity as the government or any other sovereign authority that men can submit to in their endeavour to make their lives better. This means that the idea of social contract is used to affirm the arguments postulated in past political theories rather than being used contrarily to the past political theories (Gauthier, 1990). In conclusion, it can be construed that the idea of social contract plays the role of affirming the past political theories as well as explaining the reason behind the human motivation to be bound by the state laws and rules. References Gauthier, D. Moral Dealing: Contract, Ethics, and Reason. Cornell: Cornell University Press, 1990. Hobbes, T. 1651a. Leviathan. C.B Macpherson (Editor). London: Penguin Books, 1985 Locke, J. Two Treatises of Government and A Letter Concerning Toleration. Yale University Press, 2003. Plato. Republic. Trans. G.M.A. Grube, Revised by C.D.C. Reeve, Hackett Publishing Company, 1992. Read More