About
Thomas Hobbes, born in 1588 in Malmesbury and died in 1679, was a major English philosopher. He spent most of his career in the service of the Cavendish family, while traveling in Europe and meeting Galileo. Exiled in Paris from 1640 to 1651, he published De Cive and wrote his masterpiece, Leviathan (1651), which founded social contract theory and defended absolute sovereignty. His materialist and empiricist philosophy opposed Descartes and Aristotle. He also wrote on history and translated Homer.
* 1588-04-05 — † 1679-12-04
Major works
- Leviathan (1651)philosophical treatise
- De Cive (1642)philosophical treatise
- De Corpore (1655)philosophical treatise
- De Homine (1658)philosophical treatise
- Behemothhistory
Key milestones
- 1640Fled to Paris, describing himself as 'the first of all that fled'.
- 1651Publication of Leviathan, his masterpiece.
- 1660Charles II granted him a pension after the Restoration.
Themes
Social contractAbsolute sovereigntyState of natureMaterialismEmpiricism
Sources: plato.stanford.edu · britannica.com · rep.routledge.com
