Thomas Hobbes

What is the best way to run a nation? Why should people obey the law? Is the government really necessary? Thomas Hobbes addresses these questions along with others in his Leviathan. His arguments promote the need for absolute authority. He says people are self-interested and very competitive. Without a sovereign, society will be in a constant state of war. In order to avoid this constant battle, people need to turn over all of their rights …

…will realize that they too will be exiled and eventually be killed when they break their covenants. Because people are self-interested, they want the best life possible. Giving up some of their freedoms, so to protect them, will give people the best possible lives. Building covenants, held in place by a sovereign, is in the self-interest of all men. All men want peace. Show them that by entering and maintaining covenants, they will have peace.