Hobbes09

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Thomas Hobbes was born prematurely on April 5, 1588, in Malmesbury. Hobbes abandoned his family to escape punishment for fighting with clergyman and was then raised by his uncle. At local schools he became a proficient classicist, translating greek into latin iambics by the time he was 14. he then went to Oxford, where he graduated in 1608. He then became a tutor to William Cavendish and accompanied him on the grand tour (1610) of Europe, which opened to him intellectual horizons undreamt of in Oxford. During his stays abroad he obtained some of the insights that made him review the current state of philosophy. Returning to England with Devonshire in 1537, he began to write his philosophical treatises. But the revolutionary events of 1640 made him seek refuge abroad in Paris, where he wrote his //De cive// and his //Leviathan// and other works. Criticised for his views in France, he returned to England at the end of 1651, and spent the rest of his life peaceably (protected by the Devonshires) but in constant controversy with his detractors.

It is said that one day while waiting for a friend he wandered into a library and happened to find a copy of euclid's geometry. Fascinated by the interconnections between axioms, postulates, and premises, he adopted the ideal of demonstrating certainty by way of deductive reasoning. his interest in mathematics is reflected in his second work, //a short treatiseon first principles,// which presents a mechanical interpretation of sensation, as well in his brief period of being the math tutor to charles the 2nd. his generally loyalist sympathy is expressed in the elements of law caused Hobbes to leave england during the long parliament. for the rest of his life hobbes traveled extensively and peublished prolifically. in france he me rene descartes and the anti cartisian pierre gassendi.although born into the elizabethean age, hobbes outlived most of the major 17th century thinkers. he died on Dec. 4th, 1679, at the age of 71.

Hobbes' masterpiece, Leviathan was published in 1651. This book established most western political philosophy from the perspective of social contract theory. Hobbes also contributed to a diverse array of fields, including history, geometry, physics of gases, theology, ethics, general philosophy, and political science. His account of human nature as self-interested cooperation has proved to be an enduring theory in the field of philosophical anthropology. He was one of the main philosophers who founded materialism. hobbes' system encompassed the advantages of both the rationalist tradition and the modern empiricism tradition. He was a consistent empirist and nominalist. he always attacked the misuse of language. Hobbes viewed reason as a summation of consequences rather than an innate, originative source of ne knowledge.

Hobbes was fascinated with the sense of perception. the origin of all thought is sensation which consists of mental images produced by the pressure of motion of external object. he anticipated later thought by distinguishing between the external object and the internal image. he believed that understanding and reason, which distinguish men from animals, consists entirely of the ability to use speech. speech is the power to transform images into words or names. hobbes also believed that when two names are so joined that the definition of one contains the other, the proposition is true. thomas hobbes was a great 17th century figure with modern ideas that have founded much of western philosophy today.

Thomas Hobbes Born in Malmesbury, son of a clergyman, he was educated locally then went to Oxford, where he graduated 1608. From 1608 to 1628 he became tutor to William Cavendish, later 2nd earl of Devonshire, and accompanied him on the grand tour (1610) of Europe, which opened to him intellectual horizons undreamt of in Oxford. During his stays abroad he obtained some of the insights that made him review the current state of philosophy; he met Galileo Galelei, Marsenne and Gassendi. Returning to England with Devonshire in 1537, he began to write his philosophical treatises. But the revolutionary events of 1640 made him seek refuge abroad in Paris, where he wrote his //De cive// and his //Leviathan// and other works. Criticised for his views in France, he returned to England at the end of 1651, and spent the rest of his life peaceably (protected by the Devonshires) but in constant controversy with his detractors. One of the towering intellectuals of his time, he made wholly original contributions to philosophical thought. A philosophical materialist, he argued in //Leviathan// that men originally lived in a state of savage nature; they entered civil society by banding together to bestow on one sovereign the power to rule over them. Such a power resided absolutely in the hands of the sovereign, the 'Leviathan', and could not be revoked.

Kamen, Henry. "Hobbes, Thoms." //History study center//. Routledge, 200. Web. 14 Sept. 2009. [].
 * Hobbes fell in love with geometry and 'was wont to draw lines on his thigh and also on the sheets, abed, and also multiply and divide'
 * 'he walked much and contemplated, and he had in the head of his staff a pen and ink-horn, carried always a notebook in his pocket, and as soon as a notion darted, he presently entered it in his book, or else he should perhaps have lost it'
 * ** Hobbes ** was universally condemned, and this was because his views were idiosyncratic, acceptable neither to divine right monarchy nor to liberal republic, deplorable in the eyes of Catholic, Anglican and Puritan alike.
 * After the Restoration he remained politically suspect, yet his principal enemies were the churchmen, who rightly looked upon him as an atheist.

> Thomas Hobbes argues for a [|social contract] and rule by an absolute [|sovereign]. Hobbes wrote that chaos or civil war — situations identified with a [|state of nature] and the famous motto //[|Bellum omnium contra omnes]// ("the war of all against all") — could only be averted by strong central government.
 * __Leviathan (wikipedia)__**
 * The book concerns the structure of [|society] and legitimate [|government], and is regarded as one of the earliest and most influential examples of [|social contract theory].[|[1]] The publisher was Andrew Crooke, partner in [|Andrew Crooke and William Cooke]. It is one of the most profoundly influential works of political thought ever written.
 * //Leviathan// was written during the [|English Civil War]; much of the book is occupied with demonstrating the necessity of a strong central authority to avoid the evil of discord and civil war.
 * Beginning from a [|mechanistic] understanding of human beings and the passions, Hobbes postulates what life would be like without government, a condition which he calls the [|state of nature]. In that state, each person would have a right, or license, to everything in the world. This inevitably leads to conflict, a "war of all against all" (//[|bellum omnium contra omnes]//)
 * To escape this state of war, men in the state of nature accede to a [|social contract] and establish a [|civil society].
 * According to Hobbes, society is a population beneath a [|sovereign] [|authority], to whom all individuals in that society cede their natural rights for the sake of protection. Any abuses of power by this authority are to be accepted as the price of peace.
 * However, he also states that in severe cases of abuse, rebellion is expected. In particular, the doctrine of [|separation of powers] is rejected:[|[11]] the sovereign must control civil, military, judicial and ecclesiastical powers.
 * //Leviathan// was also well-known for its radical religious views, which were often Hobbes's attempt to reinterpret scripture from his materialist assumptions.
 * His denial of incorporeal entities led him write, for example, that [|Heaven] and [|Hell] were places on Earth, and to take other positions out of sync with church teachings of his time

(wikipedia) an [|English] [|philosopher], remembered today for his work on [|political philosophy]. His 1651 book //[|Leviathan]// established the foundation for most of Western political philosophy from the perspective of [|social contract] theory.[|[1]] Hobbes also contributed to a diverse array of fields, including [|history], [|geometry], physics of [|gases], [|theology], [|ethics], general [|philosophy], and [|political science]. His account of human nature as self-interested cooperation has proved to be an enduring theory in the field of [|philosophical anthropology]. He was one of the main philosophers who founded [|materialism]. In October 1679, Hobbes suffered a bladder disorder, which was followed by a paralytic stroke from which he died on [|4 December] [|1679]. He is said to have uttered the last words "A great leap in the dark" in his final moments of life

strauss L. (2009). Thomas Hobbes. //Wikipedia//. Retrieved (2009, september 15) from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Hobbes#Later_life


 * born prematurely on april 5, 1588
 * "my mother gave birth two twins, myself and fear"
 * abandoned his family to escape punishment for fighting with another clergyman "at the church door"
 * raised and educated by an uncle
 * became tutor to the cavendesh family
 * his first work,
 * while waiting for a friend he wandered into a library and chanced to find a copy of euclid's geometry. fascinated by the interconnections between axioms, postulates, and premises, he adopted the ideal of demonstrating certainty by way of deductive reasoning
 * his interest in mathematics is reflected in his second work, //a short treatiseon first principles,// which presents a mechanical interpretationof sensation, as well in his brief period of being the math tutor to charles2
 * his generally royalist sympathy as expressed in //the elements of law// caused hobbes to leave england during the long parliament.
 * died on dec. 4, 1679
 * his system encompassed advantages of both rationalism and empirism.
 * he believed too strongly in the power of deductive reasoning from definitions to share bacon's exclusive enthusiasm for inductive generalizations from experience
 * attacked the misuse of language
 * he was fascinated with the problem of sense perception
 * the origin of all thought is sensation which consists of mental images produced by pressur of motion of external objects
 * speech is the power to transform images into words or names.

langley R.J. (1973). Hobbes. //Mcgraw-Hill Encyclopedia of World Biography//. San Francisco, USA: Mcgraw-Hill.