Reflection about Thomas Hobbes Philosophical Thoughts
Uploaded by yuneng on Jan 27, 2017
Reflection Paper about
Moral Philosophy of Thomas Hobbes
Moral Philosophy, I believe is a branch of philosophy that deals with categorizing, then defending, and lastly recommending what is right and what is wrong in society. There are norms that are universal as far as moral and political conduct. These values are beyond what one might consider to be personal ethics with how we ought to live our lives.
Thomas Hobbes is a well-known and great political philosopher of his times. His moral philosophy has been less influential than his political philosophy in some parts because it was not expressed or understood clearly, to have garnered any general agreement as to its contents and his beliefs. Hobbes's moral thought is difficult to untangle from his politics.
On his view, what we ought to do depends greatly on the situation in which we find ourselves. Where political authority is lacking as in his famous natural condition of mankind, our fundamental right seems to be saved, by whatever means we think fit. Where political authority exists, our duty seems to be quite straightforward: to obey those in power.
Hobbes's state of nature is unacceptable and shows a lack of hope for the future which he constructs it based on testing and experience and normative assumptions. He assumes that people neither are sufficiently similar in their mental and physical attributes that no one is invulnerable nor can expect to be able to dominate the others. Hobbes assumes that people generally “shun death” or to avoid death, and that the desire to preserve their own lives is very strong in most people. While people have local affections, their benevolence is limited, and they have a tendency to prejudice. Concerned that others should agree with their own high opinions of themselves, people are sensitive to slights. They make evaluative judgments, but often use seemingly impersonal terms like ‘good’ and ‘bad’ to stand for their own personal preferences. They are curious about the causes of events and anxious about their futures, these characteristics incline people to adopt religious beliefs; although the content of those beliefs will differ depending upon the sort of religious education one has happened to receive.
What happens, then, if we do not follow Hobbes in his arguments that judgment must, by necessity or by social contract or both, be the sole province of the sovereign? If we are optimists about the power of human judgment, and about the...