"The only way to erect such a common power, as may be able to defend them from the invasion of foreigners, and the injuries of one another... is to confer all their power and strength upon one man, or upon one assembly of men, that may reduce all their wills, by plurality of voices, unto one will... This is more than consent, or concord; it is a real unity of them all, in one and the same person, made by covenant of every man with every man... and he that carrieth this person, is called sovereign, and said to have sovereign power; and every one besides, his subject."
—Thomas Hobbes, *Leviathan*, 1651
Based on the passage, Hobbes's concept of the social contract is best understood as an agreement in which citizens do which of the following?
- AAbolish private property and overthrow industrial business owners to establish a classless society.
- BEstablish state control over merchant shipping and accumulate gold to maintain a positive balance of trade.
- Surrender their individual power to a sovereign authority in exchange for security and protection from mutual harm.Answer
- DSubmit to colonial administration and direct rule by foreign empires to achieve economic modernization.
Answer
Surrender their individual power to a sovereign authority in exchange for security and protection from mutual harm.
The correct answer is correct because Hobbes's passage describes citizens conferring all their power upon a sovereign in order to defend themselves from external threats and internal conflict. This exchange of individual freedom for collective security is a core element of early social contract theory.
Step-by-Step Solution
Key Concept
Social Contract Theory
Estimated Time:45s