Hobbes And Locke's Theory Of Liberal Democracy
ABSTRACT
In exploring the main arguments of Hobbes and Locke, outlining their points of convergence as well as divergence, this paper will argue that western democracies also known as liberal democracies can be categorized as hybrids that enlist both Hobbesian and Lockean traits. The view that Hobbes’ absolutist state is despotic, prone to the elements of tyranny and does not conform to democratic principles is misplaced. This paper will argue that Hobbes laid the foundations of modern day liberal democracy, with its key tenets of; (i) individual rights, (ii) the natural equality of all men, (iii) the need for legitimate sovereign authority to be attained through the consent of the governed and, (iv) the recognition of the special purpose of the law in furthering peace and security. It is these fundamental tenets of liberal thought that were further clarified and refined by other scholars, including Locke in his Two Treatise of Government essay. The key tenets of …show more content…
The power of the state is absolute and unitary, and all men having voluntarily entered into the commonwealth, ought to submit to the authority of the absolute, undivided and unlimited power. The use of the law and coercive powers bequeathed to the sovereign, according to Hobbes, is not to bind people from voluntary action but to direct and protect them from their destructive nature whose affinity to conflict is undeniable. Whilst relinquishing his natural right to the sovereign, man retains the right to resist a sovereign that threatens to deprive him of life and ‘or the means of so preserving life, as not to be weary by it.” (Coleman, 1974) It is therefore the duty of the sovereign to ensure the maintenance or removal of external conditions that promote or hinder the pursuit of happiness. In this regard, Hobbes managed to resolve the legal problem of conflicting rights of the sovereign and the
In exploring the main arguments of Hobbes and Locke, outlining their points of convergence as well as divergence, this paper will argue that western democracies also known as liberal democracies can be categorized as hybrids that enlist both Hobbesian and Lockean traits. The view that Hobbes’ absolutist state is despotic, prone to the elements of tyranny and does not conform to democratic principles is misplaced. This paper will argue that Hobbes laid the foundations of modern day liberal democracy, with its key tenets of; (i) individual rights, (ii) the natural equality of all men, (iii) the need for legitimate sovereign authority to be attained through the consent of the governed and, (iv) the recognition of the special purpose of the law in furthering peace and security. It is these fundamental tenets of liberal thought that were further clarified and refined by other scholars, including Locke in his Two Treatise of Government essay. The key tenets of …show more content…
The power of the state is absolute and unitary, and all men having voluntarily entered into the commonwealth, ought to submit to the authority of the absolute, undivided and unlimited power. The use of the law and coercive powers bequeathed to the sovereign, according to Hobbes, is not to bind people from voluntary action but to direct and protect them from their destructive nature whose affinity to conflict is undeniable. Whilst relinquishing his natural right to the sovereign, man retains the right to resist a sovereign that threatens to deprive him of life and ‘or the means of so preserving life, as not to be weary by it.” (Coleman, 1974) It is therefore the duty of the sovereign to ensure the maintenance or removal of external conditions that promote or hinder the pursuit of happiness. In this regard, Hobbes managed to resolve the legal problem of conflicting rights of the sovereign and the