Political Science · Western Political Thought
Which is correct about Thomas Hobbes' conception of sovereignty?
- 1. The sovereign had absolute, unlimited, undivided and inalienable power
- 2. The sovereign was above positive laws
- 3. The sovereign was not a party to the social contract
- 4. The sovereign had to be a single ruler, a monarch
A1, 2 and 3 ✓ Correct
B1, 2 and 4
C1, 2, 3 and 4
D1, 3 and 4
Correct answer: (A) 1, 2 and 3 — Items 1, 2 and 3 are correct, so the answer is 1, 2 and 3.
Explanation
★Items 1, 2 and 3 are correct, so the answer is 1, 2 and 3.
★For Hobbes the sovereign's power was absolute, undivided and inalienable.
★The sovereign stood above the positive laws.
★The sovereign was not a party to the social contract itself.
★Item 4 is wrong, because Hobbes did not require the sovereign to be a single monarch.
★The sovereign could be a person, an assembly or even a republic, though he preferred monarchy.
★So the must-be-a-monarch claim does not fit Hobbes.
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