Comparative Analysis of Nature and Purpose of the State Theories

This essay delves into the multifaceted nature and purpose of the state, examining its historical and philosophical underpinnings. It begins by defining the state as a political organization and distinguishes it from other social groups based on its primary function: establishing and maintaining security and order within a defined territory. The essay then explores the evolution of the concept of the state through the social contract theory, focusing on the seminal contributions of Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. It contrasts Hobbes' view of the state of nature and the need for an absolute sovereign with Locke's emphasis on individual rights and limited government, and Rousseau's concept of popular sovereignty. The essay concludes with a personal preference for democratic governance, highlighting its values of liberty, equality, inclusivity, and welfare, and provides examples of democratic states. It also includes a list of relevant academic references.

Running head: NATURE AND PURPOSE OF STATE
Nature and Purpose of State
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Author’s note

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NATURE AND PURPOSE OF STATE
Traditionally, state is defined as the political organization of the society. It is an
identifiable political entity, typically established as a centralized organization. It is distinguished
from the other existing social groups on the merit of its purpose—the establishment and retention
of security and order within the designated territory. However, there is no universally accepted
definition of state as a body polity. Philosophers and scholarly thinkers have been dwelling on
the notion of state as a political organization since antiquity1.
The most significant discourses on state can be found in the works of Thomas Hobbes,
John Lock and Jean Jacques Rousseau. All of them developed their critique of state based on the
social contract theory, although their views regarding the nature and purpose of the state differ
from each other. The social contract theory was originally introduced by Ancient Greek
philosopher Socrates’ argument, which indicates that the political state is a result of human
individuals’ moral or political obligations, more specifically it is dependent upon an agreement
or contract among common people to form a regulated, civil society to live within. However,
during the Enlightenment period, the theory was further extended to justify the legitimacy and
authority of political state over the individuals. In the modern social and political philosophy, the
idea of social contract theory is first expounded and defended by Thomas Hobbes.
According to Hobbes’ famous exposition of the ‘state of nature’, described the primitive
human individuals as essentially brutish, nasty, solitary and cruel. Without a proper political
order and legal regulation, Hobbes opined, every individual would possess an unlimited freedom
to do as they please. This amount of natural freedom has the potential to kill, plunder or rape,
creating a continuous threat to everyone. As Hobbes describes, such limitless freedom would
facilitate an endless war of all against all (bellum omnium contra omnes). To mitigate such
1 Bird, Colin. An introduction to political philosophy. Cambridge University Press, 2019.

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conflict, free individuals developed a social contract among themselves to create a civil society.
Within such society, every individual will have security from atrocities in return of completely
submitting themselves to an uncontested sovereign. The rule of such sovereign may be tyrannical
and arbitrary. However, Hobbes formulated absolute authority as the only solution for the
terrifying anarchy perceived in the state of nature2.
Locke differed from Hobbes on the several aspects, although they agreed on the
fundamental notion that individuals within the state of nature would submit themselves by moral
obligation, bound by the law of Nature. Locke believed people would live in a constant fear and
without security of their rights in the absence of a government to protect them. Hence, they
agreed to submit to a political authority, who will act as a neutral judge and protect their rights,
liberty and property. Unlike Hobbes’ absolute submission to the sovereign, Locke advocated for
a state where people would have freedom regulated by law3.
Rousseau, on the other hand, provided an altogether different version of social contract
theory. He maintained that the foundation of political authority is based on unlimited popular
sovereignty, a system where the government is created and governed by the consensus of the
people living within, exerted through their elected representatives. The notion of popular
sovereignty, as per Rousseau’s outlook, was inalienable and indivisible. However, the limitation
of such popular sovereignty, Rousseau opines, lies in the fact that people are often ignorant of
their true desire. He also maintains that people cannot pursue such collectivism by following an
egoist attitude. Therefore, they must submit themselves under the regulation of law created by
the people themselves as a collective. In his conception of state, Rousseau also maintained that
2 Höffe, Otfried. Thomas Hobbes. SUNY Press, 2015.
3 Rapaczynski, Andrzej. Nature and politics: Liberalism in the philosophies of Hobbes, Locke, and Rousseau.
Cornell University Press, 2019.

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liberty is only achievable when people govern themselves as a collective through directly
participating in the process of lawmaking4.
Among the three versions of state, Rousseau’s view aligns with the tenets of democracy
the most. As a personal preference, I believe that a democratic state is the best form of social and
political organizations that can contain its citizens in an egalitarian manner. In democracy,
common people hold the political power to govern themselves either directly or by elected
representatives. Essential humanitarian values, such as liberty, equality, inclusivity and welfare
are the characteristics of a democratic state, where the citizens govern themselves by these
principles5. There are several examples of democratic state around the world. For example, the
federal government of the United States is a form of democracy, although it is a representative
democracy. The Singaporean government is also an example of representative democracy,
whereas Switzerland is one of the rare example where direct democracy prevails.
4 Cobban, Alfred. Rousseau and the modern state. Vol. 14. Routledge, 2019.
5 Rousseau, Jean-Jacques. Rousseau: The Social Contract and other later political writings. Cambridge University
Press, 2018.

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References
Bird, Colin. An introduction to political philosophy. Cambridge University Press, 2019.
Cobban, Alfred. Rousseau and the modern state. Vol. 14. Routledge, 2019.
Höffe, Otfried. Thomas Hobbes. SUNY Press, 2015.
Rapaczynski, Andrzej. Nature and politics: Liberalism in the philosophies of Hobbes, Locke, and
Rousseau. Cornell University Press, 2019.
Rousseau, Jean-Jacques. Rousseau: The Social Contract and other later political writings.
Cambridge University Press, 2018.