Hobbes and Lockes’ Theories of State of Nature and Social Contract Through Pragmatic Lenses

Abstract

This study looks at some of the philosophical ideas of early thinkers, Thomas Hobbes and John Locke, and applies a pragmatist twist to them in order to wade into the possibilities of finding new paradigms and approaches to practice, since pragmatism is focused on practical results and solutions. The main objective of the study was to interrogate a pragmatic speculation into the theories of John Locke and Thomas Hobbes on the concepts of social contract and the nature of man. The research questions are to examine if a pragmatic lens is even applicable in the consideration of their views on the social contract and nature of man, to assess possible consequences of such an application on the practice of the social contract and the nature of man as envisioned by the two philosophers, and to recommend philosophical pathways that appear possible in such an intellectual journey into the unknown. The method used in this research is discourse analysis. The recommendation is that the field of philosophy has always been a field of questioning reality and seeking further knowledge, and such escapades need to be encouraged rather than thwarted.