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Chapter 29
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Leviathan, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Nature, War, and Civil Society
Power, Common-wealths, and Monarchies
Religion
Fear
Reason, Fact, and Philosophy
Summary
Analysis
The sovereign exists for the safety of the subjects of the common-wealth, and the sovereign is obligated by the Laws of Nature to serve the common-wealth to the absolute best of their ability. This care is not given on an individual level, but in general, through example and the execution of sound laws. If a sovereign’s rights are taken away, the common-wealth dissolves; thus, it is the duty of the office of the sovereign to ensure and maintain these rights.
As the sovereign’s power is the collective power of the people (the people willingly hand their power of self-preservation to the sovereign), the sovereign is obligated by the Law of Nature to exercise that right on behalf of the people who gave up said power. This power can only go back to the people if the common-wealth is dissolved.
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Subjects of a common-wealth should be taught not to envy the government of neighboring nations. What flourishes in one kind of common-wealth, for example, an aristocracy, is not what is best for a monarchy or a democracy. Furthermore, subjects should also be taught not to envy their fellow subjects, so they will not give honor to another that is reserved only for the sovereign. Subjects must also be taught not to dispute the sovereign power, and there should be days set aside, as there is with the Sabbath, to spend time learning one’s duty to the common-wealth and sovereign power.
This passage motions back to Hobbes’s warning about ancient Greek and Roman society, in which people lived in democracies and generally disapproved of monarchies. The favored political philosophy of Hobbes’s time was that of Aristotle and Plato (both Greeks), and Hobbes argues that the Greek model of society cannot be used to inform monarchies, as the two societies do not compute. In a common-wealth, no one should be held above the sovereign, not even God; thus, Hobbes implies the Sabbath would be better spent learning about the sovereign.
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It is necessary for the safety of the people of a common-wealth that justice is administered by the sovereign equally to all subjects. Breaking a law is always a crime against the common-wealth, and at times, a crime can also be against an individual subject. When a crime is done onto the common-wealth, it can be pardoned without worry of equity; however, when a crime is committed onto a single subject, that crime cannot be pardoned without the permission of the injured party.
Justice must be administered by the sovereign equally to all people because the Laws of Nature maintain that all people are equal. A crime done unto the common-wealth is done unto the entire common-wealth; therefore, to pardon a crime done unto everyone does not show favoritism. However, to pardon a crime done unto an individual person implies favoritism of the subject who committed the crime.
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Inequality between people of a common-wealth comes from acts of the sovereign, which is why equal taxes are important for equality of subjects. If a subject is not able to support themselves by their own labor, they should be provided for by the common-wealth and not left to rely on the charity of others. An able-bodied subject, however, is not permitted to be idle and must work toward the common good of the common-wealth.
If a sovereign does not treat its subjects equally, it cannot be expected that subjects will treat each other equally, since the sovereign sets the example for behavior in a common-wealth. Providing for those unable to provide for themselves is also in accordance with the Laws of Nature, which maintain that people must always work toward the common and shared good of people.
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A good sovereign makes good laws, but a good law is more than a just law, since no law can ever be unjust. A law is good if it is warranted and in the best interest of the common-wealth. The purpose of laws is not to keep people from making voluntary actions but to keep them from hurting themselves or others through poor decisions and sudden desires. An articulate and eloquent sovereign is most helpful in the declaration of laws and legislation, and in punishment and the rewarding of subjects as well.
A sovereign’s actions can never be considered unjust, as the sovereign is the sole judge of what is just or unjust in any given common-wealth. A law should keep a subject in line, as they should fear the punishment of committing any given crime. If a subject does not fear a sovereign’s punishment, a sovereign’s power is ineffective.
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It is also the sovereign’s duty to appoint good counselors for the betterment of the common-wealth and to seek their counsel when necessary. Good council does not come from lot or birth, and good council does not come only from the rich. There must be a method to the study of politics, as there is in the study of geometry, so the education that future counselors have is sound and grounded in reason. Just as it is best to receive counsel by a single counselor rather than an assembly, it is likewise best for a counselor to give counsel apart from an assembly.
A sovereign’s choice of counselors must be equitable (come from every class of people), just as the common-wealth itself must be equitable in accordance with the Laws of Nature. Again, Hobbes implies that political philosophy should be elevated to the level of geometry, because, in Hobbes’s opinion, politics are grounded in facts, like mathematics, that must be learned and followed by any given political counselor.
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The sovereign must also appoint a commander of the Army, and if said commander is not popular among subjects, the commander cannot be loved or feared as they should to be an effective leader. But a commander’s popularity can be dangerous to the sovereign if the sovereign is not also popular, Hobbes warns. The sovereign’s popularity is of no threat to a popular commander, whose soldiers are not likely to side against the sovereign no matter how much they love a commander.
According to Hobbes, there is a fine line between an Army commander who is loved too much and one who is not loved enough. Obviously, a commander who is not respected will not be followed as well as one who is. On the other hand, subjects should never respect another power more than the sovereign, as this could lead a subject to obey their commander over their sovereign.
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