Three Discourses: A Critical Modern Edition of Newly Identified Work of the Young Hobbes [Paperback]

Thomas Hobbes (Author), Noel B. Reynolds (Editor), Arlene W. Saxonhouse (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0226345467 | ISBN-13: 978-0226345468 | Publication Date: May 15, 1997

For the first time in three centuries, this book brings back into print three discourses now confirmed to have been written by the young Thomas Hobbes. Their contents may well lead to a resolution of the long-standing controversy surrounding Hobbes's early influences and the subsequent development of his thought. The volume begins with the recent history of the discourses, first published as part of the anonymous seventeenth-century work, Horae Subsecivae. Drawing upon both internal evidence and external confirmation afforded by new statistical "wordprinting" techniques, the editors present a compelling case for Hobbes's authorship.

Saxonhouse and Reynolds present the complete texts of the discourse with full annotations and modernized spellings. These are followed by a lengthy essay analyzing the pieces' significance for Hobbes's intellectual development and modern political thought more generally. The discourses provide the strongest evidence to date for the profound influences of Bacon and Machiavelli on the young Hobbes, and they add a new dimension to the much-debated impact of the scientific method on his thought. The book also contains both introductory and in-depth explanations of statistical "wordprinting."

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The three discourses printed here, together with 12 other pieces, were first published in 1620 under the title Horae Subsecivae (Leisure Hours). Hobbes may have been the author of the discourses, but it was not until Reynolds and Saxonhouse carried out a statistical analysis ("wordprint") of the text that reasonably solid evidence for Hobbes's authorship was demonstrated. The editors do note, however, that the shorter pieces in the Horae Subsecivae were likely written by someone other than Hobbes, possibly William Cavendish, a student of Hobbes's and later second Earl of Devonshire. This volume begins with an essay by the editors on Hobbes and the Horae Subsecivae; the texts of the three discourses ("A Discourse Upon the Beginning of Tacitus," "A Discourse of Rome," and "A Discourse of Laws"), annotated and with modern spellings, follow. Part 3 contains an excellent essay by Saxonhouse on Hobbes's place in modern political thought. Part 4 is a short essay on statistical wordprinting as an analytical tool. This book deserves a place in all libraries supporting programs in the history and philosophy of political thought.
Terry C. Skeats, Bishop's Univ. Lib., Lennoxville, Quebec
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: University Of Chicago Press (May 15, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0226345467
• ISBN-13: 978-0226345468
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,780,378 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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5.0 out of 5 stars The First Modern Political Philosopher, August 8, 2006

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Michael A Neulander "Political Philosophy" (VA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Three Discourses: A Critical Modern Edition of Newly Identified Work of the Young Hobbes (Hardcover)

Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) wrote "Leviathan" in 1651, it was his most important philosophical work. I think you should know something of Hobbes to understand how his thinking was influenced by his experiences. He was born 2 months prematurely on the day the Spanish Armada approaches the English coast. His mother's fear of invasion caused the premature birth. Hobbes remarked late in life, "his mother brought forth twins-myself and fear." Fear seems to be Hobbes life long companion and the key passion in his political system, which uses human passions as its foundation. He was a child prodigy reading Latin and Greek at the age of six years old. At fifteen, he entered Oxford University and hated his educational experience there. He thought the curriculum was too immersed in the ancient Greek philosophers like Aristotle. He called them "erroneous doctrines," and throughout his life he railed against English universities for there stodgy curriculum.

At the age of 22, he graduates and takes a job to tutor the son of the Earl of Devonshire. It gives him the opportunity to travel throughout Europe where he meets with Galileo in Florence and Descartes in Paris. Descartes calls Hobbes the greatest political philosopher of his day. During the British civil war, Hobbes flees to Paris because he is a well-known monarchist sympathizer. In 1651, he publishes his monumental work "Leviathan." He returns to England, submits to Cromwell's government, and withdraws from politics. He is on friendly terms with Charles II when the Stuart's are restored to the throne.

Hobbes philosophy is "materialistic"; he is greatly influenced by Galileo's mechanistic approach to science, and Euclidian geometry. His ambition was to explain all phenomena, man, and government with mathematical precision. In "Leviathan," he explains human conduct is a product of human passions. The most dominant passions are fear of violent death and desire for power, both are manifestations of man's most basic impulse, "self preservation." Hobbes asserts that the basic impulse is the right of the individual; he calls it a "natural right." All men process this natural right equally. This theory leads Hobbes to believe man's natural state to be one of constant conflict with each other. This leads him to write the following quote he is most known for: "men's lives are solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short." So as not to have to live in constant state of fear or conflict, men make a contract for protection with the state. Hobbes believes that the best state is one led by a single sovereign whose power must be unrestricted with all three branches of government devolving to him. A single sovereign who has absolute power and cannot be replaced by the people.

His political writing had immediate influence in the world and influences other philosophers like Spinoza, Hutcheson, Locke, and Hume. Hobbes is the first man to write about political philosophy in such methodical terms. He is an excellent writer and his theories are easy to understand by the laymen. As a graduate student of political philosophy, I recommend if you have an interest in politics, philosophy, or government then you must start with reading Hobbes "Leviathan."