Key thinkers' views on human nature, the state, society and the economy Flashcards
Hobbes views on human nature.
Humans are needy, vulnerable and easily led astray in attempts to understand the world around them.
Humans are self-centred - ‘state of nature’ - hypothetical situation where there is no authority - humans would exhibit a ‘restless desire’ for power, a ‘war of every man against every man’
Life would become ‘solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short’
Hobbes views on the state.
In Leviathan (1651), argued for almost total obedience to absolute govt - as the only alternative was chaos.
Social contract - to establish political authority - the people surrender all rights except self-defence to whom they grant authority.
Hobbes views on society.
An ordered society should balance the human need to lead a free life
Hobbes views on the economy.
N/A.
Burkes views on human nature.
Rejected the enlightenment view that humans are rational thinkers - instead, we are both imperfect and imperfectible
Burke’s views on the state.
Organic state - state resembles a living organism - gradual change to the state to preserve political stability and social harmony.
“a state without the means of change is without the means of its conservation”
Burke’s view on society.
‘Sybil’ (1845)
Organic society - change has to be undertaken with great caution, mindful of the delicate balance inherent in an organic society:
- All parts of society work together harmoniously to ensure a healthy ‘social body’
- Rests on belief in hierarchy, authority and paternalism
Society should take on board ‘tested’ wisdom of the past to make decisions - protection and long-standing institutions, customs and practices
Spoke against utopian society based on ‘liberty, fraternity and equality’
Society is a contract between the dead, the living, and those yet to be born
Burke’s views on the economy.
Oakeshott’s views on human nature.
Oakeshott’s views on the state.
