Thomas Hobbes was an English philosopher. Hobbes is best known for his 1651 book Leviathan, in which he expounds an influential formulation of social contract theory. He is considered to be one of the founders of modern political philosophy.
Portrait by John Michael Wright, c. 1669–70
Frontispiece from De Cive (1642)
Thomas Hobbes. Line engraving by William Faithorne, 1668
Tomb of Thomas Hobbes in St John the Baptist's Church, Ault Hucknall, in Derbyshire
Leviathan or The Matter, Forme and Power of a Commonwealth Ecclesiasticall and Civil, commonly referred to as Leviathan, is a book written by Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679) and published in 1651. Its name derives from the biblical Leviathan. The work concerns the structure of society and legitimate government, and is regarded as one of the earliest and most influential examples of social contract theory. Written during the English Civil War (1642–1651), it argues for a social contract and rule by an absolute sovereign. Hobbes wrote that civil war and the brute situation of a state of nature could be avoided only by a strong, undivided government.
Frontispiece of Leviathan by Abraham Bosse, with input from Hobbes
1904 edition edited by Alfred Rayney Waller
