Flaws in Hobbesian Sovereignty Argumentative Essay
Flaws in Hobbesian Sovereignty
Discusses and negates the powers political philosopher Thomas Hobbes gives the sovereign and the state of nature in his work "Leviathan".
# 26219
| 2,905 words
| 1 source
| MLA
| 2002
| 
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Description:
This paper describes the contradictions and errors philosopher Thomas Hobbes made in his famous work "Leviathan". The paper argues that hidden within the many principles that Hobbes sets forth in "Leviathan" are intricate paradoxes and contradictions that void the very foundation that the book is written on. Hobbes' purpose in "Leviathan" is to demonstrate that an absolute sovereign is needed to emerge from the state of nature. In analyzing the transition out of the state of nature and looking at the powers granted to a sovereign, the paper argues that both the emergence is flawed, as is the necessary absoluteness of sovereignty.
From the Paper:
"While these concepts sound feasible, even under Hobbes's rules they cannot take place. Hobbes says of traits in the state of nature "and which is worst of all, continuall feare, and danger of violent death (89)." By definition, the state of nature is one where this paranoia and fear runs rampant and no one trusts anyone else. With that simple premise in place, it would be impossible for any of these people to abandon their rights to someone else, because doing so would make them helpless! Existing in a state of constant fear would render trust impossible, thereby eliminating the ability for one man to prove himself to another man."Cite this Argumentative Essay:
APA Format
Flaws in Hobbesian Sovereignty (2003, April 27)
Retrieved April 18, 2021, from https://www.academon.com/argumentative-essay/flaws-in-hobbesian-sovereignty-26219/
MLA Format
"Flaws in Hobbesian Sovereignty" 27 April 2003.
Web. 18 April. 2021. <https://www.academon.com/argumentative-essay/flaws-in-hobbesian-sovereignty-26219/>