Thomas Hobbes
According to Hobbes, if a man is positioned in a state of nature that is without any type of government, human beings would be fighting with each other. Hobbes claimed that in this natural state, the life of a man was “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short” (Slomp, 2017). He theorized to go away from this state of war, humans were required to enter into a social agreement that would ensure the safety of every individual. He named it contractual entity a commonwealth and claimed that this would allow individuals to repel foreigners’ invasion and injuries of each other. Hobbes identified three kinds of sovereigns-monarchies, aristocracies, and democracies but monarchies were expressed effectively. In his view of the nature of man, it was molded largely by the English Civil War that happened from 1642 to 1649 and resulted into the beheading of King Charles I. He also claimed that the only type of government that is more powerful enough to control the humanity’s cruel compulsions in order was an absolute monarchy, where a king had supreme and unchecked power over his subjects. Hobbes had a belief that the individual property concept rights would result in the state of war. Also, he believed that humans in an almost unfailing sovereign with unlimited power to take and use any form of power and all properties to make the society better.
John Locke
John Locke differed with Hobbes in the state of nature. He believed that that the state of nature was not one of the constant wars; rather there was natural law “that accommodated all people” not to endanger another in his life, health, liberty, or possessions. ”He also claimed that a person could possess property in the state of nature which means that the government pre-existence of property; is not merely a government’s grant (Ward, 2017). A man has a sole right to himself and shares a right to all materials in a natural state but he could change common resources into his private property in applying his labor. Locke also believed that all men might be restrained from invading other people’s rights and from doing hurt to each other and the law of nature be obeyed which will result in peace and preservation of mankind.
Furthermore, he believed that when a man in the state of nature joined the society, he did so to keep himself, liberty and property-for no rational human can transition his condition to deteriorate. He showed many times that the government could not take a person’s property without his permission. He also accepted the taxation concept but only a necessary portion is shared by the government. All in all, he held a belief that we all have absolute rights and that these could encompass rights over physical possessions and realty that makes our property. The rights could be in existence with or without the state and the work of the state is to make the property more secure and provide necessary assistance to the people when they need it.
References
Slomp, G. (Ed.). (2017). Thomas Hobbes. Routledge.
Ward, L. (2017). Thomas Hobbes and John Locke on a liberal right of secession. Political Research Quarterly, 70(4), 876-888
`