Social Contract Theory: Hobbes, Locke, and Rousseau

The Social Contract: Creating Political Order

A social contract is an agreement that creates a state. Its aim is to benefit individuals and improve their situation. The resulting political system varies depending on how the contract is designed: between whom it is made, for whom it is made, and whether it is revocable.

Key Thinkers on the Social Contract:

a) Thomas Hobbes

Hobbes defended extreme individualism, where each individual is completely independent. In the state of nature, humans are driven by two principles: self-preservation and satisfying their appetites. Without organization and with unlimited freedom, individuals pursue their interests. While resources are plentiful, there is no conflict. However, when resources become scarce and desirable to multiple individuals, conflict arises, potentially leading to a state of war that could result in the elimination of humankind. To escape this, humans establish a pact, granting all power to a sovereign, called Leviathan.

b) John Locke

Locke viewed the state of nature as difficult for individuals to rationally defend their rights, particularly property. This difficulty arises either from an individual's inability to repel aggression or from others exceeding their authority arbitrarily. Therefore, a political organization and an objective law are necessary to remedy the disadvantages of the natural state.

c) Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Rousseau described the state of nature as a solitary existence, with the only natural community being the family, and only for the duration children need parental care. In this state, humans are uncorrupted by vice, slavery, or artificial life; they are good, healthy, and self-sufficient. They are driven by the desire for self-preservation and pity or compassion for their fellow beings. In the state of nature, humans are fundamentally equal, with differences arising only from natural attributes like age, health, or physical ability, which do not lead to significant disparities. Rousseau distinguishes between natural (physical) inequality and political inequality. Political inequality is a product of social conventions and leads to disparities in wealth and social standing. Individuals cannot remain indefinitely in the state of nature to preserve themselves. For protection of both their property and persons, they need to form a society. Individuals then become members of a community and are subject to the general will, expressed through legislation.