Thomas Hobbes
Thomas Hobbes
Thomas Hobbes of Malmesbury, in some older texts Thomas Hobbs of Malmsbury, was an English philosopher, best known today for his work on political philosophy. His 1651 book Leviathan established social contract theory, the foundation of most later Western political philosophy...
NationalityEnglish
ProfessionPhilosopher
Date of Birth5 April 1588
men greater
and where men build on false grounds, the more they build, the greater is the ruine
taken men mad
And for Incoherent Speech, it was amongst the Gentiles taken for one sort of Prophecy, because the Prophets of their Oracles, intoxicated with a spirit, or vapor from the cave of the Pythian Oracle at Delphi, were for a time really mad, and spake like mad-men; of whoose loose words a sense might be made to fit any event, in such sort, as all bodies are said to be made of Materia prima .
thinking matter capable
I think, therefore matter is capable of thinking.
purpose indirect direct
Power as is really divided, and as dangerously to all purposes, by sharing with another an Indirect Power, as a Direct one.
philosophy book law
The Interpretation of the Laws of Nature in a Common-wealth, dependeth not on the books of Moral Philosophy. The Authority of writers, without the Authority of the Commonwealth, maketh not their opinions Law, be they never so true.
law should
This is that law of the Gospel; whatsoever you require that others should do to you, that do ye to them.
propositions
Science [is] knowledge of the truth of Propositions and how things are called.
men order benefits
And seeing every man is presumed to do all things in order to his own benefit, no man is a fit Arbitrator in his own cause
past men
Men looke not at the greatnesse of the evill past, but the greatnesse of the good to follow.
men two together
When two, or more men, know of one and the same fact, they are said to be CONSCIOUS of it one to another; which is as much as to know it together.
men judging causes
No man can be judge to his own cause.
ignorance passion men
And in these four things, opinion of ghosts , ignorance of second causes, devotion towards what men fear , and taking of things casual for prognostics , consisteth the natural seed of religion ; which by reason of the different fancies, judgments and passions of several men, has grown up into ceremonies so different, that those which are used by one man, are for the most part ridiculous to another.
faith men giving
Faith is a gift of God, which man can neither give nor take away by promise of rewards or menace of torture.
passion men names
From the same it proceedeth,that men gives different names, to one and the same thing, from the difference of their own passions: As they that approve a private opinion, call it Opinion; but they that mislike it, Haeresie: and yet haeresie signifies no more than private opinion; but has only agreater tincture of choler