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Thomas Hobbes Islamic State

Decent Essays

Hobbes’ thesis, that without recognizing the rule of a sovereign we will end up in the state of nature, can help us understand how the so called called Islamic State gained power throughout the Middle East. Hobbes lived throughout the English civil wars of the 1640s which ultimately lead him to the conclusion there would be “no arts, no letters, no society, which is worst of all, continual fear, and danger of violent death; and the life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short. (p. 50).” That is to say a life without a sovereign is no life at all. Only a strong government (or sovereign), can provide us the security that we need to enjoy life. According to Hobbes if one wanted the luxuries of “commodious living” they had to acquiesce

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