Hobbes and the Social Contract Tradition [Paperback]

A major study of Hobbes' political philosophy drawing on developments in game and decision theory.Hobbes in Leviathan argued for a form of government in which subjects submit to the rule of an absolute sovereign through a social contract between the ruler and the ruled. This new and comprehensive analysis of the argument draws on recent developments in game and decision theory to test its validity.Hobbes in Leviathan argued for a form of government in which subjects submit to the rule of an absolute sovereign through a social contract between the ruler and the ruled. This new and comprehensive analysis of the argument draws on recent developments in game and decision theory to test its validity.This major study of Hobbes's political philosophy draws on recent developments in game and decision theory to explore whether the thrust of the argument in Leviathan, that it is in the interests of the people to create a ruler with absolute power, can be shown to be cogent. Professor Hampton has written a book of vital importance to political philosophers, political and social scientists, and intellectual historians.Acknowledgments; A note on texts and references; Introduction; 1. 'Of Man': the foundation of Hobbe's political argument; 2. What is the cause of conflict in the state of nature?; 3. The shortsightedness account of conflict and the laws of nature; 4. The argument of absolute sovereignty; 5. Authorizing the sovereign; 6. Hobbe's social contract; 7. The failure of Hobbe's social contract argument; 8. Can Hobbe's argument be salvaged?; 9. How the traditional social contract argument works; Bibliography; Index. Hampton's ingenious argument...is the besst that has yet been advanced to explain how Hobbesian persons could institute a sovereign. David Gauthier, Philosophy and Public Affairs