Thomas Hobbes (April 5, 1588 – December 4, 1679) was born prematurely in Westport, England. His father was a disgraced vicar who fought in front to his own church. His father left his wife, two sons, and a daughter behind. After the scandal, Hobbes found himself in the care of an uncle. His father’s brother was a tradesman and alderman and provided Hobbes with his education.
Hobbes excelled at classical languages and at age 14, he went to Magdalen Hall at Oxford to continue his studies. He left Oxford in 1608 and became the private tutor for William Cavendish, the eldest son of Lord Cavendish of Hardwick, later known as the first Earl of Devonshire.
In 1610, Hobbes traveled with William to France, Italy, and Germany. During their travels, they met some of the leading scholars of the day, such as Francis Bacon, who served as Lord Chancellor of England and championed Aristotle’s scientific approach to problem-solving, and Ben Jonson, named poet laureate by King James I.
William Cavendish, a member of Parliament in 1614 and 1621, died in 1628 and his death left Hobbes searching for a new job. Hobbes found work quite easily in the aristocratic families of the period. He went to work for the Marchioness of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, a cousin of William Cavendish and the Marchioness’s brother, Sir Charles Cavendish.
Through his association with the Cavendish family, Hobbes participated in activities where the actions of the king, members of Parliament, and wealthy landowners were discussed. He also observed the influence and structures of power and government.
In 1640, Hobbes wrote The Elements of Law, Natural and Polite, in support of King Charles I. At the end of the English Civil War (1642 – 1651), and having supported the losing side, Hobbes fled to France and lived there until 1651.
The problem of perception fascinated Hobbes. He extended Galileo’s (1564 – 1642) mechanical physics into an explanation of human cognition. Hobbes believed that the origin of all thought was sensation, which consists of mental imaged produced by the pressure of motion of external objects. He maintained that understanding and reason, a product of our ability to use speech, distinguished men from other animals.
Hobbes’s political philosophy is found in his famous quote that natural life is “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.” He maintained that men seek power because it is the only guarantee of living well. He also thought that a “social contract” existed that bound an individual to treat others as he expected to be treated. In his view, the sovereign power of England over its colonies was not subject to the laws of its citizens. He believed that obedience to the Crown would remain as long as the Sovereign fulfilled the social contract by protecting the rights of the individual. Hobbes thought that rebellion is, by definition, unjust. He also warned that should a rebellion succeed, a new absolute sovereign would replace the deposed one.
Among his works are The Elements of Law, Natural and Politic (1640), On the Citizen (1642), and Leviathan (1651), his best known.
Source: Library of Congress and the National Archives
Patriot Parchment 