Hobbes and the State of Nature

Hobbes’ arguments about scarcity and general equality of men go to the basics of modern economics and specialization theories. Each man has his own worth and has ability to contribute, he just has to capitalize on his inherent abilities.

However, it is Hobbes’ arguments about the State of Nature which concern me. Hobbes’ State of Nature is an overly pessimistic view of the world. Hobbes asserts that because we lock our doors at night and keep our money in a safe, we are proving his claim that men act out of self-interest and general disregard for one another’s needs. However, I take exception to this. We do not lock our doors as a statement towards all of humanity. We lock our doors to prevent the few irrational human beings out there from disrupting our rational behavior. Such behavior on our part may be stupid, but it is by no means an admission that humanity is innately selfish, which seems to Hobbes’ contention.

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