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QLDPhilosophy and ReasonQuick questions
Unit 4: Social and political philosophy
Quick questions on Social contract theory and political authority: QCE Philosophy and Reason
7short Q&A pairs drawn directly from our worked dot-point answer. For full context and worked exam questions, read the parent dot-point page.
What is the structure of a contract argument?Show answer
Social contract theories share a method. They imagine a state of nature (life without government), argue that it contains problems serious enough to make rational people agree to be governed, and conclude that the state's authority is justified by that hypothetical agreement. The differences between theorists come from how grim they think the state of nature is and how much power they think people would rationally hand over.
What is thomas Hobbes (1588 to 1679)?Show answer
In Leviathan (1651), Hobbes paints the bleakest state of nature: a "war of all against all" in which life is, in his words, poor, nasty, brutish and short. Because resources are scarce and people roughly equal in their capacity to harm one another, no one is safe. Rational self-interested individuals therefore agree to transfer almost all their rights to an absolute sovereign (the "Leviathan") whose overwhelming power keeps the peace. For Hobbes, even tyranny is preferable to anarchy, so the sovereign's authority is near-absolute and rebellion is almost never justified.
What is john Locke (1632 to 1704)?Show answer
In the Second Treatise of Government (1689), Locke offers a more optimistic picture. His state of nature is governed by a law of nature grounded in reason, giving each person natural rights to life, liberty and property. The problem is not constant war but the lack of an impartial judge and reliable enforcement. People therefore form government to protect their pre-existing rights, granting it only limited, conditional authority.
What is jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712 to 1778)?Show answer
In The Social Contract (1762), Rousseau famously opens that man is born free yet everywhere in chains. His state of nature is comparatively peaceful; it is society and private property that corrupt. The contract creates a community in which each person submits to the general will (the collective will aimed at the common good) and thereby remains free, because they obey laws they have a share in making. Rousseau's theory points toward popular sovereignty and democracy, though critics worry the "general will" can be used to override individual dissent.
What is q1?Show answer
Outline Hobbes's view of the state of nature and the authority it justifies. [4 marks]
What is q2?Show answer
Explain how Locke's contract differs from Hobbes's regarding the limits of government. [4 marks]
What is q3?Show answer
State one objection to social contract theory and a possible reply. [3 marks]
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