Leviathan

(noun)

A book written by Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679) and published in 1651. The work concerns the structure of society and legitimate government, and is regarded as one of the earliest and most influential examples of social contract theory. It argues for a social contract and rule by an absolute sovereign.

Related Terms

Examples of Leviathan in the following topics:

  • Thomas Hobbes

    • Hobbes was the first modern philosopher to articulate a detailed social contract theory that appeared in his 1651 work Leviathan.
    • As 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.

  • The Development of Social Science

    • This unity of science as descriptive remained, for example, in the time of Thomas Hobbes who argued that deductive reasoning from axioms created a scientific framework; his book, Leviathan, was a scientific description of a political commonwealth.

  • "The People"

  • Sociology and Other Social Sciences

    • His book, Leviathan, was a scientific description of a political commonwealth.

  • Introduction to the Enlightenment

    • The English philosopher Thomas Hobbes ushered in a new debate on government with his work Leviathan in 1651.

  • Natural Rights

    • Thomas Hobbes'  1651 book Leviathan established social contract theory, the foundation of most later Western political philosophy.