POLI 206 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Robert Filmer
Document Summary
Freedom is not understood as self-direction (as you are making choices for yourself). You"re only free when nothing is holding you back. Issue of quality: nobody is stronger than anyone else, not smarter. What man would be like if he was considered asocial. Aristotle defends this by saying we are social beings. Hobbes in the other hand says otherwise: we are independent individuals. Denies any moral achitecture based on men"s sociability. Looking at human"s experience without any moral conception. Individuals are simply self-interested ---> which leads to rivelary. Conflict is not a result of our sins, but a result of our interests. (opposite of augustine) Hobbes rewrites the natural law, but still uses the same language. Real problem: if nobody should make promise, a social contract can never happen. Hobbes" points he raised: why leviathan has absolute power. We"re the ones who intentionaally creates de fondations. Replacement of natural sentiment due to the fact we authorised.