Hobbes (Thomas Hobbes)

Thomas Hobbes was a 17th-century philosopher best known for his political thought. In his book *Leviathan*, he argued that in a natural state without government, life would be "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short" due to constant conflict. To escape this chaos, people agree to give up some freedoms and submit to a strong, centralized authority—the sovereign—to maintain order and security. Hobbes believed that a powerful government is necessary, since humans are naturally self-interested and driven by a desire for self-preservation. His ideas laid the foundation for modern political philosophy and the concept of social contract.