Thomas Hobbes (scientist)

Thomas Hobbes was born April 5,1588 at Malmesbury in Wiltshire, England. He died December 4,1679, at age 91. His childhood is unknown and we do not know his mothers name but his fathers name was Thomas. His father was the vicar of Westport. His father had to leave his three children with his older brother after he got in a fight with a clergyman outside of his own church, so he was forced to flee London. Hobbes was educated at the Westport church from the age of four. Then he went to a private school, and after that he went to Oxford University.

Hobbes first area of study was physical doctrine of motion and momentum. But his most favorite field of science was politics. Also, he was the first western philosopher who proved necessity of a political state. He thought that humans were addicted to power, which leads to war. Thomas Hobbes also said that humans have a natural instinct to fight for power , thus, a need for a very strong government. He believed in a very strong government, with lots of rules and harsh punishments. Hobbes wrote a book on strong government called Leviathan. In the book, Hobbes argues for a social contract and a rule by absolute sovereign. Thomas Hobbes was a Christian. He was a Christian his whole life and was one until he died. He was a pessimist, which means he would always think about the worst. When things quieted down a little bit in England, Thomas went back home for a while, then his former pupil, Prince Charles, became King Charles II. For many years Hobbes published his ideas without incident.