Hobbs..not only the one i enjoy reading about..reminds of a rather good biscuit...

Thomas Hobbs (1588- 1679) is described in Early Modern Europe, H G Koenigsberger, as being “the greatest political writer of the period”. He is remembered today for his work on political philosophy. A book he wrote in 1651 (Leviathan) created the foundations for most of todays Western political philosophy from the perspective of social contract theory. Social contract is covering lots of theories which try to explain the ways people create states and maintain a social order. It implies that people surrender some of their rights in order to recieve or maintain a social order through the rule of law. A simpler explaination would be to think of it as an agreement between them and rules set out by the ones that govern them.

The starting point for many of the theories was the theoriy of 'State of Nature'. This is where an individual’s actions are bound only by their conscience. From this common starting point, the various componants of social contract theory attempt to explain, in different ways, why it is in an individual’s rational self-interest to voluntarily give up the freedom they have in the state of nature in order to obtain the benefits of political order.

According to Hobbes, the lives of individuals in the state of nature were "nasty, brutish and short", a state where self-interest and the absence of rights and contracts prevented the 'social', or society.

The social contract was an idea where individuals came together and gave up some of their rights so that others would cede theirs (e.g. person A gives up its right to kill person B if person B does the same). From this social/ conscience agreement the establishment of society came about, and by extension, the state. Society was thus no longer anarchic.

But, states now acted in their own interests: in competition with each other. Just like the state of nature, states were bound to be in conflict because there was no rule over an above the state (i.e. more powerful) capable of imposing social-contract laws.

I think that I would get along with Hobbes. My merit may be good but yet to be placed first! He came to his conclusions in a logical manner, i enjoy order and hate confusion.