Political Science 1020E Study Guide - Midterm Guide: Status Quo Bias, Tomato Juice, Pareto Efficiency
1 Jul 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
Steven Pinker
● Our era is less violent than any other era in human history
Noam Chomsky
● state s generate widescale violence
● Moral progress along with potential nuclear annihilation
Hobbes
● Worst scenario: no state, main premise: human nature
● Human nature
○ Introspection, materialism, felicity, reputation, self regarding, averse to own
death, equally able and equally vulnerable
● Hobbes road to war: equality, scarcity, uncertainty
● Hobbes law of nature big three: keep covenants, seek peace, be willing to lay down your
liberty
● Equality: equally physically able
● Laws of nature: Laws of rationality to survive
● Natural liberty: life, liberty, and property
● There will be scarcity and conflict
● The savage is unaware of morality: solitary, only fears pain and hunger
● Reply to Anarchism: fear and competition will ruin cooperation, a few bad apples ruin
everything
● Negative justification of the state: only because the alternative is so bad
John Nash
● The best result comes from everyone doing what is best for themselves and the group
Adam Smith
● Individual ambition serves the common good
Locke
● State of nature is one of peace
● Equality: lack of subordination
● Laws of nature: Moral law
● Natural liberty: Within moral laws
● Executive power of law of nature includes the right to punish by everyone
● There will be abundance, cultivate your own land
● Civilization has corrupted us we are naturally good
● Lockes conclusion to state of nature: we either each believe our own rules or we all
agree to a set of rules
● Property is whatever we need: should not waste, leave enough and good for others
● Created the labour mixing argument, the value-added argument
Rousseau
● Human nature: desire for self-preservation and pity/compassion for others
● The state of nature will improve leading to innovation, cooperation, and leisure
● Freedom is making the laws for ourselves then following them, not following our desires
● He thinks executive power should be held by a few but everyone votes for laws
● His thoughts on private property: no one owns the earth, fruits of earth belong to
everyone
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Our era is less violent than any other era in human history. Moral progress along with potential nuclear annihilation. Worst scenario: no state, main premise: human nature. Introspection, materialism, felicity, reputation, self regarding, averse to own death, equally able and equally vulnerable. Hobbes road to war: equality, scarcity, uncertainty. Hobbes law of nature big three: keep covenants, seek peace, be willing to lay down your liberty. Laws of nature: laws of rationality to survive. The savage is unaware of morality: solitary, only fears pain and hunger. Reply to anarchism: fear and competition will ruin cooperation, a few bad apples ruin everything. Negative justification of the state: only because the alternative is so bad. The best result comes from everyone doing what is best for themselves and the group. State of nature is one of peace. Executive power of law of nature includes the right to punish by everyone. There will be abundance, cultivate your own land.
