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
firsts causes want
The first cause of Absurd conclusions I ascribe to the want of Method.
knowledge
Scientia potentia est, sed parva; quia scientia egregia rara est, nec proinde apparens nisi paucissimis, et in paucis rebus. Scientiae enim ea natura est, ut esse intelligi non possit, nisi ab illis qui sunt scientia praediti.
liberty deceiving states
Subjects have no greater liberty in a popular than in a monarchial state. That which deceives them is the equal participation of command.
desire progress way
Felicity is a continual progress of the desire from one object to another, the attaining of the former being still but the way to the latter.
party blow judging
And therefore, as when there is a controversy in an account, the parties must by their own accord, set up for right Reason, the Reason of some Arbitrator, or Judge, to whose sentence, they will both stand, or their controversy must either come to blows, or be undecided, for want of a right Reason constituted by Nature; so is it also in all debates of what kind soever.
dream thinking waking
Because waking I often observe the absurdity of dreams, but never dream of the absurdities of my waking thoughts, I am well satisfied that being awake, I know I dream not; though when I dream, I think myself awake.
memories future past
The Present only has a being in Nature; things Past have a being in the Memory only, but things to come have no being at all; the Future but a fiction of the mind.
hateful obligation
Obligation is thraldom, and thraldom is hateful.
mean men desire
So that in the first place, I put for a general inclination of all mankind a perpetual and restless desire of Power after power, that ceaseth only in Death. And the cause of this is not always that a man hopes for a more intensive delight than he has already attained to, or that he cannot be content with a moderate power: but because he cannot assure the power and means to live well, which he hath present, without the acquisition of more.
men atheism belief
Immortality is a belief grounded upon other men's sayings, that they knew it supernaturally; or that they knew those who knew them that knew others that knew it supernaturally.
war men victory
When all the world is overcharged with inhabitants, then the last remedy of all is war, which provideth for every man, by victory or death.
past times-past prudence
Prudence is a presumption of the future, contracted from the experience of time past.
ambition passion political
Ambition, and Covetousnesse are Passions that are perpetually incumbent, and pressing.
men caution equal
Prudence is but experience, which equal time equally bestows on all men in those things they equally apply themselves unto.