Hobbes, Thomas (1588-1679), was an English philosopher. His most famous
work, Leviathan, or the Matter, Form, and Power of a Commonwealth,
Ecclesiastical and Civil (1651), was concerned with political theory. In this work,
he denied that people are naturally social beings. He argued instead that
people's most basic motives are selfish considerations.
Hobbes was influenced by two developments of his time. One was a new system
of physics that Galileo and others were working out (see Galileo). From their
ideas, Hobbes concluded that only matter exists and that everything that
happens can be predicted in accordance with exact, scientific laws. Many people
of his time believed that his view denied the existence of both God and a free
human soul that is immortal. But Hobbes himself denied this.
The second great influence on Hobbes's thought was the English Civil War (16421648). People, he concluded, are selfish. They are moved chiefly by desire for
power and by fear of others. Thus, without an all-powerful sovereign to rule
them, their lives would be "poor, nasty, brutish, and short." These views also
shocked his contemporaries.
Hobbes's influence. Though modern physics is not so materialistic as it
seemed to be in Hobbes's day and though human motives are more complex
than he supposed, Hobbes's influence continues. He raised fundamental and
challenging questions about the relationship between science and religion, the
relationship between thought and the physiological processes on which it is
based, and the nature and limitations of political power. The questions that
Hobbes raised are ones that people still struggle to answer.
His life. Hobbes was born on April 5, 1588, in Westport (now part of
Malmesbury), England. He was educated at Oxford University and served as
secretary to Sir Francis Bacon and as tutor to William Cavendish, who later
became Earl of Devonshire. Hobbes traveled widely with Cavendish and came
into contact with many European philosophers and scientists.
During the English Civil War, Hobbes fled to the European continent. For a short
time, he tutored the Prince of Wales, later Charles II, in mathematics. Though
Hobbes returned to England while Oliver Cromwell's Protectorate was still in
power, he was able to make peace with Charles II when Charles became king in
1660. Hobbes died on Dec. 4, 1679.