Thomas Hobbes

Thomas Hobbes was born in 1588 in England. He lived to the age of 91, which is amazing for his time. He was not born into money but he had a wealthy uncle that supported his development. Eventually, through his uncle's support he made it to the University at Oxford and began tutoring a noble families son and later on would tutor King Charles II. Through this connection, he gained knowledge about the royals and their operations. in 1640 - 1651 Hobbes fled England to France due to the Civil Wars of 1642-46 and 1648-51. His connection to the royals causes him to fear for his safety since during this time they were being assassinated.
    Hobbes would have long drawn out arguments with people from different fields. He was so passionate about arguing that at 80 when he could not write himself, due to “Shaky Palsy”, he would have a secretary write for him to defend his views.
    Hobbes had his hand in a vast amount of fields but his greatest and fame earning achievements were his books on morality and politics. Hobbes famous writings include The Elements of Law(1640), De Cive(1642), Leviathan(1651), De Corpore(1655), De Homine(1657), Behemoth(1682). His biggest intellectual influences can be seen throughout his books. His stance against religious authority being involved in politics and his passion for science and geometry. He was not atheist even though that would seem the case. One of his major points was against the Christian theology being mixed with Aristotelian metaphysics. In other words, he strongly believed that religion and politics should not be mixed.
    Hobbes subscribed to materialist metaphysics, which is the belief that all things that exist are made of matter in some way. Yet he still believed in a spiritual God. Hobbes believed that God should oversee religious worship but not interfere with political ordeals.
    Hobbes belief about how the man should act is pretty simple. If political authority is lacking then save yourself. If it is not, just obey those in power. To him, humans being were machines and the world was essentially a human being too. For the world to be effective it needed a head or an unaccountable leader to decide the political and social direction. This view is based on reasoning from first principles, not science causing many do not subscribe to it.
    Human nature, according to Hobbes, was based around 2 points: human motivation and judgment and reasoning ability. He believed that human judgment ability was lacking and that science should serve as our guide. To Hobbes, war was inevitable due to the natural state of mankind. He believed that government was the best way to stop social conflicts from happening. Hobbes believed freedom was the ability to move freely. Also, he believed that promises held a heavyweight. He is willing to betray promises, it seems, if his personal safety may be affected. Though Hobbes believed that the world should be governed by a head like a king or queen, he did not believe that the monarchs got their power from God.


Quiz:
It was said that Thomas Hobbes was the founding father of what?

What year was Hobbes born?

What school did Hobbes attend?

What book is Hobbes famous for?

Hobbes was a scholar in mathematics, in what branch was he particularly known?

Thomas Hobbes left England in 1640, where did he go to?



Discussion Questions:
   
How can Hobbes believe in God and Materialist Metaphysics?

How is political authority justified and how far does it extend?

How can humans live in peace without fear of conflict?

Are humans machines?