Thomas Hobbes and Social Contract Theory
Thomas Hobbes and Leviathan
● Leviathan: Hobbes' book describes an "artificial person" that protects society,
metaphorically represented as a giant composed of its citizens.
● Purpose: The Leviathan directs and controls society to maintain order and
avoid chaos.
Key Concepts
● State of Nature: A chaotic and violent state where life is "solitary, poor, nasty,
brutish, and short."
● Social Contract: Individuals surrender some freedoms to a sovereign
authority to ensure peace and stability.
● Sovereign Authority: Absolute power held by a monarch or government,
necessary to prevent society from reverting to chaos.
Historical Context
● Hobbes' ideas emerged during England's civil war, influenced by the conflict
between King Charles I and Parliament. He argued that avoiding war required
strong, centralized control.
Philosophical Implications
● Metaphysics: Hobbes critiqued metaphysics, arguing it complicates matters
and leads to conflict. He viewed humans as machines governed by natural
laws.
Contemporary Relevance
● Hobbes' theory remains practical and applicable, especially in understanding
the balance between freedom and security. It highlights the need for laws
that benefit the commonwealth rather than just individual wealth.
John Locke and Social Contract Theory
● Key Works: Two Treatises of Government (1690), Essay Concerning Human
Understanding (1690), and Four Letters Concerning Toleration (1689).
● First Treatise: Disagrees with Robert Filmer's idea that all men must follow
the king, arguing that men govern themselves by reason and the law of God.
● Second Treatise:
○ Advocates for a government that protects natural rights: life, liberty,
and property.
○ Describes a government founded on consent and dedicated to the
public good.
○ Emphasizes equality and justice, where violations of rights are
punished.
○ Differentiates between the state of nature (peaceful rationality) and
state of war (conflict without consent).
○ Discusses property as a natural right, to be cultivated for comfort and
convenience.
○ Outlines elements of a well-functioning society: established law,
impartial judiciary, and a supportive executive.
○ Advocates for the creation of a state to prevent rebellion, ensuring a
constitution that protects all interests.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Social Contract Theory
● Key Works: Discourse on Inequality (1755), The Social Contract (1762), and
Emile (1762).
● Discourse on Inequality:
○ Examines the evolution of human nature and the emergence of
inequalities.
○ Attributes innovation and self-improvement to human progress but
recognizes economic disparities due to private property.
● The Social Contract:
○ Defines the "general will" as the collective interest of society, not just a
sum of individual wills.
○ Advocates for a society where individuals submit to the general will for
justice and equality.
○ Stresses civic virtue and direct democracy, where people participate in
decision-making.
○ Distinguishes between the passive state, active sovereign, and
comparative power.
○ Highlights the necessity of public decision-making processes and the
balance between individual and general will.
○ Warns about the potential for an all-encompassing sovereign that
might suppress individual voices.
Utilitarianism of Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill
Jeremy Bentham's Utilitarianism
● Principle of Utility: Focuses on maximizing happiness and minimizing pain
for the community.
● Primary Concept: Actions are good if they promote pleasure and reduce pain
for the majority.
● Hedonism Basis: Prioritizes pleasure as humanity's driving force.
● Four Sanctions
1. Physical Sanction: Physical pleasure.
2. Political Sanction: Community's pleasure.
3. Moral Sanction: Individual's sense of good and evil.
4. Religious Sanction: Religious experiences and promised pleasure in the
afterlife.
● Measurement of Pleasure and Pain
1. Intensity: Greater happiness.
2. Duration: Longevity of pleasure.
3. Certainty: Certain pleasurable results.
4. Propinquity: Immediate pleasure.
5. Fecundity: Series of pleasures.
6. Purity: Free from pain.
7. Extent: Community over personal happiness.
John Stuart Mill's Utilitarianism
● Purpose: Promotes happiness for all as the foundation of moral principles.
● On Liberty (1859): Advocates for civil and social liberty, opposing tyranny.
● Theory Against Tyranny: Supports self-government and individual
responsibility.
● Appropriate Region of Human Liberty
1. Inward Domain: Liberty of thought.
2. Tastes and Pursuits: Freedom to pursue desires.
3. Combination Among Individuals: Freedom to unite.
● Promoting Truth
1. Silenced opinions may hold truth.
2. Comparing opposing views can reveal truth.
3. Whole truths survive prejudice.
4. New truths challenge old dogmas.
● Subjection of Women: Asserts gender equality and critiques historical
gender roles.
Social Contract Theories and Utilitarian Ethics
1. Hobbes' Social Contract: Key Ideas
● State of Nature: A chaotic state with constant conflict, described as "war of
all against all."
● Social Contract: Individuals give up some freedoms to escape this chaos and
submit to a sovereign authority.
● Sovereign Authority: Holds absolute power to maintain order and protect
citizens.
● Absolute Power: Necessary to ensure peace and stability; sovereign is not
accountable to any higher authority.
● Obligation to Obey: Citizens must obey the sovereign to prevent a return to
the state of nature.
2. Locke's Social Contract: Key Ideas
● Natural Rights: Life, liberty, and property are inalienable and must be
protected by the government.
● State of Nature: Relatively peaceful but prone to conflicts, especially over
property.
● Social Contract: Formed to protect natural rights; government must preserve
these rights.
● Limited Government: Power comes from the consent of the governed and
can be overthrown if it fails.
● Right to Revolution: People can overthrow a tyrannical government.
3. Rousseau's Social Contract: Key Ideas
● General Will: The collective will of the people, representing common
interests.
● Social Contract: Agreement to form a society and submit to the general will
for a just and equitable society.
● Civic Virtue: Commitment to the common good and willingness to sacrifice
personal interests.
● Direct Democracy: People participate directly in decision-making to ensure
accountability.
● Total Alienation: Complete submission to the general will, necessary for
unity and harmony.
4. Utilitarian Ethics: Key Ideas
● Happiness or Well-being: The ultimate goal is to maximize overall happiness.
● Greatest Good for the Greatest Number: Morally right actions promote the
greatest happiness for the most people.
● Hedonic Calculus: Weighs pleasure and pain to choose actions that produce
the greatest net happiness.
● Impartiality: Considers the interests of all affected individuals equally.
● Consequentialism: Focuses on the outcomes of actions to judge their
morality.
