Preview

Compare and Contrast the Philosophies of John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, and Karl Marx

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
843 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Compare and Contrast the Philosophies of John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, and Karl Marx
Compare and Contrast the Philosophies of John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, and Karl Marx

In the idea of human nature; origin of state, the nature of government, the rights of regulation can be drawn as the reflection of insightful philosophies of John Locke, Thomas Hobbes and Karl Marx. By understanding this within the context of human nature, we can see their ideas play to how they perceive a modern philosophy. Karl Marx's Communist Manifesto illustrates the desire to build "a society without economic classes". John Locke's Political Theory claims the establishment of natural rights which will assist protest against unjust rulers. Thomas Hobbes's most famous publication, the "Leviathan" defines a government which unifies the collective will of many individual and unites them under the authority of sovereign power. Although the three philosophers desire the same result through their theories, its practices and use have indicated that there are difference and similarities both present. All are saying that there should be absolute government, but their areas of specialization are different.

Karl Marx and Thomas Hobbes both agreed on the theory of collectivism over individualism. Marx is more quantitative and calculative in his reasoning, while Hobbes's theories are based on natural laws. The contradiction between Marx's and Hobbes's concepts of material wealth is that –"Modern society view men to compete with each other for material goods and that is just. Humans do not live in isolation but work to achieve together a society that turns a blind eye to what is alienating man from his nature" (Marx). On the other hand, Hobbes argued that "Rights of liberty, property can be transferred from one person to another by means of legal contract. Human beings are naturally selfish, therefore they are always in the state of conflict of ‘war' with each other, unless they are forced to obey a sovereign authority or governing power." Though, differences between the two are quite



Bibliography: 1. http://www.worsleyschool.net/socialarts/marxengels/page.html (1/14/06) 2. http://www.angelfire.com/md2/timewrap/hobbes.html (12/3/2005) 3. John Locke, Essay by Jonathan Dolhenty, Ph. D. 4. "Roberts, Andrew 2.1994 - People and ideas systems http://www.mdx.ac.uk/www/study/bio.html Middlesex University" 5. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/johnlocke/html 6. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/karlmarx/html 7. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/thomashobbes/html

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    At first sight, Locke’s The Second Treatise of Government, seemed quite similar to Hobbes’s Leviathan. They both believed that a state of nature is a state that exist without government. They believe that men are created equal in this state, however Hobbes argues that because of self-preservation, man possessed the desire to control over other man. Locke, on the other hand, reasons with a more peaceful and pleasant place.…

    • 789 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    For the past many years, people have been trying to figure out the relationship between the government and nature of man. The theories of Thomas Hobbes, John Locke and Jean Jacques Rousseau about the connection between nature of man and the government have been debated for many years. These three philosophers have remarkably influenced the way our system works today. Although each theory had its flaws and merits, Jean Jacques Rousseau’s theory is superior in comparison to Thomas Hobbes and John Locke.…

    • 514 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    he founding fathers immerged from the British Colonists to become pillars in American history. The revolutionary leaders were immersed with knowledge of educational writings from scholars such as, Thomas Hobbes and John Locke, among many more. The knowledge had an immense impact, on the foundations, principles and rights, the revolutionary leaders fought so passionately to establish.…

    • 185 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The lack of an impartial judge is a defining characteristic of the state of nature, and this lack of a common judge can lead to confusion and violence therefore leading to the state of war. The state of nature and the state of war are not two separate concepts but the state of nature has the fundamental problem and civil government is the solution for the problems of the state of nature.…

    • 397 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    After many years of absolute monarchy different philosophers, leaders, and writers idealized new forms of government to create the age of Enlightenment. Important Pre-Enlightenment people such as Queen Elizabeth,Thomas Hobbes, King Louis XIV, and Plato believed that the most successful way to run a country was with a single ruler. The philosophers and the leaders of the Enlightenment era believed that providing citizens with independence and freedom was the best way for a country to thrive and succeed.…

    • 496 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Chapter 18

    • 1729 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Hobbes.
Thomas Hobbes. (1588-1679). ‘Born premature when mother heard of oncoming Armada.’ At 40, he took Euclid’s geometry as starting point to make mechanical model of universe (man and society). Mechanism (based on motion) was to greatly influence thinking over next few centuries. Witness to upheaval of civil war in England in 1640s. Fled to France. 1651. Publishes "Leviathan.”Hobbes sees state of nature sans government as "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short." Promulgates absolute monarch thesis. Says people (wholly selfish) should escape chaos of everyday life, give up their freedom to ruler who guarantees peace and order. In his state Hobbes saw ruler as absolute with men having no right to rebel since this would break the social contract and be illogical.…

    • 1729 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    Hobbes vs Locke

    • 1466 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Both Hobbes and Locke shared similarities within their political theories; however their theories also had some major differences. Both men were responding to the crisis of the 17th century and they were highly influenced by the scientific revolution. Hobbes and Locke rejected all previous theories regarding human nature. They used the same methodology, and the men accepted an atomistic view of society. They believed that individuals were rational and were motivated by self-interest. Hobbes and Locke traced their theories from a state of nature to the social contract. They agreed that the legitimacy of the government rested on the consent of the governed. Together, both men rejected legitimate political authorities such as Divine Right of Kings, brute force, historical tradition, and feudal contracts. Both political philosophers offered interesting arguments pertaining to government, human nature, and the state of nature.…

    • 1466 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Many philosophers, such as John Locke and Thomas Hobbes, have discussed over the years if he human race is naturally good or evil. People than choice their side of the argument, one side believing that humans have a basically good nature that is corrupted by society, while the other side believes that humans have a bad nature that is kept in check by society. As John Locke believes that the human race is good, it is reasonable to accept as true because we are born neutral, with free will, and fear of a higher power.…

    • 577 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    I believe that Hobbes is right that people are just self centered and rude. If everyone were good then why would we have prisons?We have prisons because there is always somebody doing something bad.Everything bad that has ever happened was due to the person being selfish.…

    • 165 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan expressed his views of how the government should run the people they governed. Leviathan stated that the people should hand over their rights to one strong ruler. He believed that all humans were all naturally selfish and wicked and by having a ruler to have complete control over them, they will gain order and obedience. Thomas believed that without a strong ruler, people will constantly have war with one another and life would be “poor and short.” Hobbes called this agreement by which people created this type of government the “social contract”. In short, Hobbes believed that the best type of government was an absolute monarchy, which will impose order and demand obedience; a “sea monster” type of ruler to control the wicked people.…

    • 478 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “according to Hobbes, is born political society. For the past 300 years, we have told ourselves a story in which humanity is a collection of rational self-seeking individuals; that society is the conflict of interests; that those conflicts are resolved by a central power given legitimacy by a social contract in which individuals recognize that it is in their interest to yield up part of their unfettered freedom; and that governments have emerged as the source of power through which conflicts are mediated.” (Hobbes, T., & Gaskin, J. C. A. (1998). Leviathan. Opposing Viewpoints.)…

    • 354 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Hobbes wrote Leviathan in 1651, at the conclusion of the bloody English Civil War. Conversely, Locke wrote Second Treatise on Civil Government in 1690, after having witnessed the bloodless overthrow of King James II. The factors which surrounded each event greatly affected the philosophy of the writer experiencing them. Thomas Hobbes’ interpretation of the social contract originated from a civil war where society ‘broke’ their social contract by executing Charles I, causing a harsh military dictatorship to begin. As written in Leviathan, “Hereby it is manifest that during the time men live without a common power to keep them all in awe, they are in that condition which is called war; and such a war as is of every man against every man.” Hobbes believed that if all people had a similar amount of power, they would only use this power to try to lessen the power of others. As such, he emphasized that one absolutist was always better than multiple rulers. On the other hand, John Locke saw a new English Bill of Rights introduced at the end of the Glorious Revolution. The Bill of Rights limited the English monarchy, gave power to Parliament, and returned some rights to the citizens. Inspired by the rebels, Locke wrote, “when their legislators have acted contrary to their trust, by invading their property, is the best defence against rebellion, and the probablest means to hinder it: for…

    • 967 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    John Locke is among the philosophers who contributed a lot of ideas on politics and how the government runs. Locke alongside other philosophers such as Thomas Hobbes examined the state of nature, a philosophical model, in understanding human nature. He offered a complete version of how the government should be run in Two Treaties of Government. Furthermore, Locke describes the state of nature as an ideal state of freedom (Locke and Hay 106). He follows the natural law tradition which argues that human beings have a moral sense that bars them from participating in some actions.…

    • 994 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Hobbes' Leviathan and Locke's Second Treatise of Government comprise critical works in the lexicon of political science theory. Both works expound on the origins and purpose of civil society and government. Hobbes' and Locke's writings center on the definition of the "state of nature" and the best means by which a society develops a systemic format from this beginning. The authors hold opposing views as to how man fits into the state of nature and the means by which a government should be formed and what type of government constitutes the best. This difference arises from different conceptions about human nature and "the state of nature", a condition in which the human race finds itself prior to uniting into civil society. Hobbes' Leviathan goes on to propose a system of power that rests with an absolute or omnipotent sovereign, while Locke, in his Treatise, provides for a government responsible to its citizenry with limitations on the ruler's powers. The understanding of the state of nature is essential to both theorists' discussions. For Hobbes, the state of nature is equivalent to a state of war. Locke's description of the state of nature is more complex: initially the state of nature is one of "peace, goodwill, mutual assistance and preservation". Transgressions against the law of nature, or reason which "teaches mankind that all being equal and independent, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty and possessions," are but few. The state of nature, according to Locke's Treatise, consists of the society of man, distinct from political society, live together without any superior authority to restrict and judge their actions. It is when man begins to acquire property that the state of nature becomes somewhat less peaceful. At an undetermined point in the history of man, a people, while still in the state of nature, allowed one person to become their leader and judge over controversies. This was first the patriarch of a…

    • 3013 Words
    • 87 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    In 1651 an English philosopher Thomas Hobbes had his work Leviathan published. Hobbes argued that government rests on a social contract in which the people give up certain freedoms they would have in a state of nature in return for the protection that a sovereign ruler can provide. Almost a half of a century later, an English philosopher, John Locke, used Hobbes concept of social contract in his Second Treatise on Civil Government. Locke claimed that all individuals have certain inalienable rights, including those of life, liberty, and property. When people form a government for securing their safety, they retain these…

    • 960 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays