Exploring Natural Laws in Hobbes' Leviathan - Philosophy and Law Essay

This essay delves into the concept of natural law as articulated by Thomas Hobbes in 'Leviathan'. It outlines how these laws, though not published, are inherent to nature and aim at promoting peace and self-preservation among humans. The discussion references specific chapters from Leviathan that address the duties of individuals towards maintaining societal harmony and the philosophical underpinnings that reject fear as a guiding principle for humanity. Hobbes identifies eight types of natural laws which advocate peace, defense within limits, respect for social contracts, avoidance of trivial disputes, forgiveness, promotion of greatness, unity over hatred, and inherent understanding without formal publication. The essay underscores how these laws are integral to leading a peaceful life, suggesting their omnipresence in human nature rather than in written statutes.

Running head: PHILOSOPHY AND LAW
Natural law
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note

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Table of Contents
Introduction:...............................................................................................................................2
Discussion:.................................................................................................................................2
Law of nature- Definition:......................................................................................................2
Reason for non-publication of natural law:............................................................................2
Types of the laws of nature:...................................................................................................3
Reference:..................................................................................................................................4

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Introduction:
The subject matter of the case is based on the principle of natural law that has been
mentioned in the book “Leviathan” by Thomas Hobbes (Hobbes, 2016). Thomas Hobbes in
his book has stated that the utmost duty of the human being is to maintain peace within the
society (Spragens, 2015). This report is evolved with the two chapters of the book Leviathan
i.e. chapter XIV and chapter XV that are dealing with the laws of nature.
Discussion:
Law of nature- Definition:
Laws are generally enacted to facilitate the life of the others and bind others in a
system so that they could not violate the rights of the others. There are certain rules of law
that are not publicised anywhere but are being followed up. These laws are treated as Law of
nature. In the words of Thomas, these laws are help to establish the self-preservation power
of the humankind and tried to restrict the destructive actions for the interest of the human life
(Malcolm, 2014). The contents of the natural law is based on the right of the nature and
ensures that every man can enjoy his natural rights peacefully.
Reason for non-publication of natural law:
Natural laws are not published anywhere as they are inherent in nature. The main
reason for non-publication is that the base of the natural law is depending on reason and
philosophy. The main theme of natural law is peace. It has been observed that the humankind
should not be treated with fear. In this case, fear means unwanted interference by the supreme
power on the humanity. The natural laws are facilitating the rules regarding the self-defence
are inherited within every member of the society and the rules regarding the same are
engraved under the natural laws (Hobbes, 2016).

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Types of the laws of nature:
In his book, Thomas Hobbs has pointed out eight types of natural laws or rules and
they are as follows:
Man should try to retain the message of peace and it is their duty to defend
themselves with maximum limit so that the ultimate goal of the natural law can be perceived.
The author that social contracts are not enough to keep peace has pointed it out. Man should
try for keeping peace. Here contract means an agreement that is legal in nature and it binds
the parties with certain terms and conditions (Spragens 2015). This contract is imposed on
everyone and the persons who have maintained the same should be respected. The
mentality to contradict on small topics is needed to be avoided and it is the theory of the
natural law to pardon the wrong doer. Considering the main objective of the natural law, a
message of greatness should be spread up and the notion of hatred should be covered up
with great fraternity and unity. This principle of natural law should be maintained and these
rules are inherent in nature. It is not necessary to publish these or encoded these in any rule
book. These laws will help to lead a peaceful life.

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Reference:
Hobbes, T. (2016). 8 To Summon a Leviathan. Modern Prometheus: Editing the Human
Genome with Crispr-Cas9, 243.
Hobbes, T. (2016). The Essential Leviathan: A Modernized Edition. Hackett Publishing.
Malcolm, N. (2014). Thomas Hobbes: Leviathan: The English and Latin Texts.
Spragens Jr, T. A. (2015). The politics of motion: The world of Thomas Hobbes. University
Press of Kentucky.

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