The Appearance of Power in Hobbes’ Leviathan
Power is widely acknowledged as central to Thomas Hobbes’ political philosophy. There is ongoing debate over whether singular human beings or, instead, plural relationships, are the true source of power. After tracing the debate between the individualist and relationist interpretations, I offer an a...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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University of Bologna
2019-07-01
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| Series: | Scienza & Politica |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://scienzaepolitica.unibo.it/article/view/9617 |
| _version_ | 1818305931505565696 |
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| author | Meghan Robison |
| author_facet | Meghan Robison |
| author_sort | Meghan Robison |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Power is widely acknowledged as central to Thomas Hobbes’ political philosophy. There is ongoing debate over whether singular human beings or, instead, plural relationships, are the true source of power. After tracing the debate between the individualist and relationist interpretations, I offer an alternative option which, I argue, can accommodate both the individual and the relation together. Hobbesian power, I contend, is an appearance of a human being as having a means to satisfy his desires and, hence, while power belongs to an individual, it only appears in relation to another who recognizes him as such. In closing, I reflect on the political implications of this notion of power in connection with desire. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-13T06:34:26Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4ee494b004d043b398173725367712a2 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1590-4946 1825-9618 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-13T06:34:26Z |
| publishDate | 2019-07-01 |
| publisher | University of Bologna |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scienza & Politica |
| spelling | doaj.art-4ee494b004d043b398173725367712a22022-12-21T23:56:33ZengUniversity of BolognaScienza & Politica1590-49461825-96182019-07-01316010.6092/issn.1825-9618/96178229The Appearance of Power in Hobbes’ LeviathanMeghan Robison0Montclair State UniversityPower is widely acknowledged as central to Thomas Hobbes’ political philosophy. There is ongoing debate over whether singular human beings or, instead, plural relationships, are the true source of power. After tracing the debate between the individualist and relationist interpretations, I offer an alternative option which, I argue, can accommodate both the individual and the relation together. Hobbesian power, I contend, is an appearance of a human being as having a means to satisfy his desires and, hence, while power belongs to an individual, it only appears in relation to another who recognizes him as such. In closing, I reflect on the political implications of this notion of power in connection with desire.https://scienzaepolitica.unibo.it/article/view/9617hobbespowerindividualismdesirerecognition |
| spellingShingle | Meghan Robison The Appearance of Power in Hobbes’ Leviathan Scienza & Politica hobbes power individualism desire recognition |
| title | The Appearance of Power in Hobbes’ Leviathan |
| title_full | The Appearance of Power in Hobbes’ Leviathan |
| title_fullStr | The Appearance of Power in Hobbes’ Leviathan |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Appearance of Power in Hobbes’ Leviathan |
| title_short | The Appearance of Power in Hobbes’ Leviathan |
| title_sort | appearance of power in hobbes leviathan |
| topic | hobbes power individualism desire recognition |
| url | https://scienzaepolitica.unibo.it/article/view/9617 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT meghanrobison theappearanceofpowerinhobbesleviathan AT meghanrobison appearanceofpowerinhobbesleviathan |