Enlightenment Thinkers Part 2

THOMAS HOBBES AND JJ ROUSSEAU

Thomas Hobbes, who lived in the 16th and 17th centuries, systematically defended the absolute monarchy and based it on philosophy. He tried to explain human nature, society, and the state along with his concepts with the state of nature and Social Convention, which he mentioned earlier. Hobbes, who frequently places the concept of sovereignty in his political thoughts, explains the foundations of these thoughts through the state of nature, where he claims that people live in an unsafe way without a state and society. In this state of nature, everyone was equally close to killing each other, so there was a constant distrust. The only way to get rid of this insecurity was to establish sovereignty. And this sovereignty could be a contract that all people gathered and made among themselves.

Hobbes, who explained the Society Convention in this way, arranged the convention in a way that also provided a basis for absolute monarchy. In these arrangements, clearly, Hobbes ' thoughts on sovereignty can also be seen. The Social Convention first arose to eliminate the state of war and ensure the safety of the community's cab and property. For this reason, as long as life is secure, society must submit to the sovereign. Second, the Social Convention was made by people in the name of ensuring a peaceful area and renouncing many freedoms. The sovereign is not a party to this convention. For this reason, there can be no such situation as ignoring the contract and ending the sovereignty. On the other hand, sovereignty is necessary for the continuity of the state, regardless of the form of government of the state. According to Hobbes ' views, which are very close to absolute monarchy, sovereignty must exist in the absolute form in order for the state to continue to exist. And finally, the sovereign has rights that are never divided, that is, sovereignty cannot be shared between other persons or institutions.

Another age of Enlightenment thinker, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, although he lived in the 18th century, put forward thoughts far ahead of his age. Rousseau, who put forward general thoughts and views on the inequality of people in political philosophy, also explained the concept of the state of nature along with this inequality. According to him, in the state of nature he portrays, humans are almost no different physically from other animals. In Tinsel, humans are separated from animals because of their ability to keep up with evolution and because they accept the laws of nature by choice, not instinct. He also offers a different argument in explaining the theory of Social Contract. According to him, in the case of the state of nature, people could comfortably meet their requirements with a small number of tools, but over time they evolved and developed, becoming insufficient for these requirements.

Fights and disputes were inevitable when the understanding of property, which evolved with people, was added to this situation. People needed a Social Contract to end this fighting environment and ensure peace. Although Rousseau also approached Hobbes ' ideas about sovereignty from different angles, there are points where the ideas of these two thinkers are similar. Rousseau, for example, emphasized that sovereignty cannot be transferred. He also talked about the absolute existence of sovereignty and argued that there should be no power against it that limits it. However, he said that sovereignty should not become a fragmented structure, even for the principle of separation of powers.