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Essay / Thomas Hobbes' Social Contract Theory - 971
In Leviathan, Thomas Hobbes sets out the hypothetical principle of the state of nature, where humans themselves are artificial. It is human nature that people will not be able to love all the time, each against each, power between the strongest. In this nation-state, you must be the strongest to survive (survival of the fittest). In order to survive, we must follow laws to keep us safe from fear. We were able to remove our fear, by creating order, to have more order; we must have security, that is why the social contract appeared. Thomas Hobbes involves the idea of social contract to solve the problem of war and disorder. If the social contract was not created, there would be no law. If there were no law, citizens would do what they want. If this is the case, citizens will ignore road signs, traffic lights, restriction signs, etc. I agreed with the idea of the social contract because it is very similar to the Declaration of Independence. It is a treaty that was adopted and approved by all 13 states. It is a proposal that has been developed and that the 13 colonies are signing because they are in complete agreement. If this Constitution was not written, I believe we will still be at war and become a weak/corrupt nation. For a law to work, people have given up their freedom. In exchange, the sovereign will decide what is good and what is not. The only freedom we can maintain is the freedom of defense. We cannot have the freedom to do what we want because if we break the law we will become outlaws. Freedom leads to the idea of desire, of wanting something, based on something we don't have. The human being is a desire machine. If we want something, we will find a way to get what we want. Thomas...... middle of paper ......o become and outlaw, we must judge, to survive. Every man defends himself to survive. According to Hobbes, “the agreement of these creatures is natural; that of men is done only by alliance, which is artificial; and therefore it is not surprising that something else (besides the alliance) is necessary to make their agreement constant and lasting..." (page 109) This is not going to change because that is what It is. Finally, in order to improve law and its government, we must have an established sovereign state. According to Hobbes, in the event of war, the sovereign can adjust the law, which also explains why the Bill of Rights was constantly revised throughout the year. In order to become powerful and survive, we must follow the test of fulfilling the contract. By following the contract we are able to create peace and have a beautiful life.