English materialist philosopher Thomas Hobbes: biography (photo)

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:41

Thomas Hobbes, whose photo is presented in the article, was born in Malmesbury in 1588, on April 5th. He was an English materialist thinker. His concepts have spread in such scientific fields as history, physics and geometry, theology and ethics. Consider further what Thomas Hobbes became famous for. A brief biography of the figure will also be described in the article.

Historical background

Thomas Hobbes, whose biography is filled mainly with work on his works and the formulation of concepts, was born prematurely. This was due to his mother's anxiety about the approach of the Spanish armada to England. Nevertheless, he was able to live to the age of 91, maintaining mental clarity throughout his years. This figure was educated at Oxford. He was interested in geographical maps, travel navigators. The ideas of Thomas Hobbes were formed under the influence of prominent thinkers of his time. In particular, he was familiar with Descartes, Gassendi, Mersenne. At one time he worked as a secretary for Bacon. Conversations with him had far from the last influence on the views of Thomas Hobbes. He was also interested in the works of Kepler andGalileo. He met the latter in Italy in 1637.

Thomas Hobbes: biography

In his outlook he was a monarchist. From 1640 to 1651. Thomas Hobbes was in exile in France. His main concepts were formed under the influence of the bourgeois revolution in England. Returning to this country after the end of the civil war, he broke with the royalists. In London, Hobbes tried to ideologically justify the political activities of Cromwell, whose dictatorship was established after the revolution.

Human Questions

Thomas Hobbes was very close to the events of his time. His main thought was the peace and security of fellow citizens. The problems of society became a central element in the work that Thomas Hobbes began. The main ideas of the thinker concerned human issues. At the very beginning of his activity, he decided to publish a trilogy. The first part was to describe the body, the second - the person, the third - the citizen. The first volume, however, was the last one planned. The treatise "On the Citizen" was published in 1642. The work "On the Body" was published in 1655, and three years later the part "On Man" was published. In 1651, Leviathan was published - the most voluminous and significant work that Thomas Hobbes created. Philosophy (briefly and in general terms) was described by him in the initial chapters of the work. The rest de alt with issues of social and state structure.

Thomas Hobbes: concept in brief

The Thinker complained about the lack of progress of his predecessors. His workshad to rectify the unsatisfactory situation. He set the task of establishing the elements that would become the basis for the development of "true" and "pure" science, subject to the use of the proposed method. So, he assumed the prevention of the emergence of erroneous concepts. Thomas Hobbes focused on the importance of methodology in the field of scientific knowledge. These thoughts echo the worldview of Bacon, who opposed scholasticism. It should be said that the interest in methodology was characteristic of many figures of the 17th century.

Specific thought

It is difficult to name any one specific area of science, which Thomas Hobbes was an adherent of. The thinker's philosophy, on the one hand, was based on empirical research. On the other hand, he was a supporter of the use of the mathematical method. He applied it not only directly in exact science, but also in other fields of knowledge. First of all, the mathematical method was used by him in political science. This discipline included a body of knowledge about the social condition, which allowed the government to create and maintain peaceful conditions. The specificity of thought consisted primarily in the use of a method derived from Galileo's physics. The latter used mechanics and geometry to analyze and predict phenomena and events in the physical world. Thomas Hobbes transferred all this to the sphere of the study of human activity. He believed that when certain facts about human nature are established, modes of behavior can be distinguished from them.individuals in specific circumstances. People, in his opinion, should be studied as one of the aspects of the material world. As for human inclinations and passions, they can be investigated on the basis of physical movements and their causes. The theory of Thomas Hobbes was thus based on the principle derived by Galileo. He argued that everything that exists is matter in motion.

The essence of the concept

The surrounding world, nature Hobbes considered as a complex of extended bodies. Things, their changes, in his opinion, occur because the material elements move. This phenomenon was understood by him as a mechanical movement. Movement is transmitted by push. It provokes an effort in the body. It, in turn, goes into motion. Similarly, Hobbes interprets the spiritual life of people and animals, which consists of sensations. These provisions express the mechanical concept of Thomas Hobbes.

Knowledge

Hobbes believed that it is carried out through "ideas". Their source is exclusively sensory perceptions of the surrounding world. No idea, Hobbes believed, can be innate. At the same time, external feelings, among other things, acted as knowledge in general. The content of ideas cannot depend on human consciousness. The mind is active and processes thoughts by comparing, separating, connecting. This concept formed the basis of the doctrine of knowledge. Like Bacon, Hobbes focused on empirical interpretation, while joiningsensationalist position. He believed that in the human mind there is not a single concept that would initially arise partially or entirely in the organs of sensation. Hobbes believed that the acquisition of knowledge comes from experience. From sensations, in his opinion, all science proceeded. Rational knowledge, he considered the matter of feelings, false or true, expressed in words, and language. Judgments are formed through a combination of linguistic elements denoting sensations beyond which there is nothing.

Math Truths

Hobbes believed that just knowing the facts would be enough for thinking in everyday conditions. However, this is not enough for scientific knowledge. This sphere requires necessity and universality. They, in turn, are achieved exclusively by mathematics. It was with her that Hobbes identified scientific knowledge. But he combined his own rationalistic positions, which are similar to those of Cartesian, with an empirical concept. In his opinion, the achievement of truths in mathematics is carried out by words, and not by direct experience of the senses.

The Importance of Language

Hobbes actively developed this concept. He believed that any language is the result of human agreement. Based on the positions of nominalism, the words were called names, which are characterized by conventionality. They acted for him in the form of an arbitrary label regarding some thing. When these elements acquire a common meaning for a group of people that is solid to one degree or another, they pass into the category of names-signs. AT"Leviathan" Hobbes said that for a person who is looking for exact truth, it is necessary to remember the designation of each name that he uses. Otherwise, he will fall into the trap of words. The more a person spends energy to get out of it, the more entangled he will become. The accuracy of words according to Hobbes should be determined by definitions, through which the elimination of ambiguity occurs, but not by intuition, as Descartes believed. According to the nominalist concept, things or thoughts can be private. Words, in turn, can be general. However, there is no "general" according to the concept of nominalism.

Movement source

Ontological views, through which the surrounding world was explained, ran into certain obstacles. In particular, difficulties arose in the question of the source of movement. God was declared as him in Leviathan and the treatise On the Citizen. Subsequent movements of things, according to Hobbes, occur independently of him. The views of the thinker, thus, diverged from the religious ideas prevailing at that time.

Problems of mechanical materialism

One of them was the understanding of man. Hobbes considered its vital activity as an exclusively mechanical process. In it the heart acted as a spring, the nerves as threads, the joints as wheels. These elements communicate movement to the entire machine. The human psyche was fully explained mechanistically. The second issue was free will. Hobbes inin his works he answered it quite clearly and directly, in accordance with his principles. He talked about how everything happens because it is necessary. People are part of this causal system. At the same time, human freedom cannot be understood as independence from necessity. He said that the movement of the individual to the desired may not have obstacles. In this case, the action is considered free. If there are any obstacles, then the movement is limited. In this case, we are talking about external problems. If something inside a person prevents the achievement of the desired, then this is not considered as a restriction of freedom, but appears as a natural shortcoming of the individual.

Social sphere

It occupies quite a lot of space in the philosophy of Hobbes. The Leviathan and the treatise On the Citizen are devoted to the social aspect. Following some humanists, he focused on the role of the individual in the life of society. Chapter 13 of Leviathan contains a description of the "state of nature" of humans. In it, that is, by nature, people differ little in ability from each other. At the same time, Hobbes believes that the human being and nature itself are neither evil nor good. In the state of nature, all individuals exercise the natural right to preserve life and avoid death. The "happiness of existence" lies in the constant success of the fulfillment of desires. However, it cannot always be calm contentment, since, according to Hobbes, life does not exist without feelings andneeds. The natural state of people is that in moving towards the desired, each person encounters another individual. Striving for peace and security, people are constantly drawn into conflicts. In his natural state, man follows the natural laws of self-preservation. Everyone here is en titled to whatever they can get with the use of force. Hobbes interprets this situation as a war against everyone, when "man is a wolf to another."

Formation of the State

This, according to Hobbes, can help change the situation. In order to survive, each individual must transfer part of his original freedom to the subject. Instead of peace, he will exercise unlimited power. People give up part of their freedom in favor of the monarch. He, in turn, will single-handedly ensure their social cohesion. As a result, the state of Leviathan is formed. This is a powerful, proud, but mortal being, which is the highest on Earth and obeys divine laws.

Power

It is created through a social contract between participating individuals. Centralized power maintains order in society and ensures the survival of the population. The treaty gives a peaceful existence in only one way. It is expressed in the concentration of all strength and power in a meeting of certain people or in one individual who could bring all the will of citizens into a single one. At the same time, there are natural laws that limit the influence of the sovereign. There are 12 of them, according to Hobbes. However, they are all united by one thought that should not beto do to another what a person would not wish to be realized in relation to himself. This moral norm was considered an important self-limiting mechanism for constant human selfishness, forcing reckoning with the presence of others.

Conclusion

The social concept of Hobbes was criticized by contemporaries in various directions. In the first place, they objected to considering the human being as a piece of matter in motion. A negative reaction was also caused by his gloomy illustration of human nature and the existence of individuals in a state of nature. His position regarding absolute power, the denial of the divine power of the sovereign, and so on, was also criticized. Nevertheless, the historical significance of Hobbes' concepts and their impact on the lives of posterity is truly enormous.