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Year 8

The state of nature and social contracts

I can explain Thomas Hobbes’ ideas about the state of nature, the social contract and the role of a sovereign.

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New
New
Year 8

The state of nature and social contracts

I can explain Thomas Hobbes’ ideas about the state of nature, the social contract and the role of a sovereign.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Hobbes explains the state of nature and the social contract in his work 'Leviathan'.
  2. The state of nature according to Hobbes is everybody living for themselves.
  3. He believed that when people have unlimited freedom, it leads to chaos and a war-like scenario.
  4. Hobbes argues that social contracts limit our freedom but provide benefits such as security.
  5. Social contracts need to be enacted by a sovereign or ruler and work to bring the state of nature to an end.

Keywords

  • Authority - the power to give orders, make decisions and enforce obedience

  • Freedom - the natural liberty to act as one wishes

  • Sovereign - a supreme ruler

  • The state of nature - a concept that imagines life without society or government, with different philosophers seeing it as either peaceful or chaotic

  • Thought experiment - a philosophical tool to test ideas in hypothetical contexts, not real-world scenarios

Common misconception

Hobbes believed freedom is bad.

Hobbes did not oppose all freedom, but argued that unlimited freedom in the state of nature leads to chaos.


To help you plan your year 8 religious education lesson on: The state of nature and social contracts, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Organise a class debate about the state of nature, with students presenting both Hobbes' view and arguments against it.
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This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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5 Questions

Q1.
What do we call academics and thinkers who study ultimate questions about existence, knowledge, ethics and reality, using logic to explore these topics?
teachers
researchers
Correct answer: philosophers
mathematicians
Q2.
Which of the below was an English philosopher (1588–1679) known for his political philosophy?
Socrates
R M Hare
Correct answer: Hobbes
Plato
Q3.
What is the name of the book written by Thomas Hobbes that argues for a strong authority to maintain order in society?
'Behemothic'
Correct answer: ‘Leviathan’
'Colossus'
Q4.
Which war did Thomas Hobbes live through?
Correct answer: The English Civil War
The Second World War
The French Revolution
Q5.
What do historians call the eighteenth-century movement which developed ideas that challenged the authority of monarchs and the Church?
The Age of Discovery
Correct answer: The Enlightenment
The Reformation
The Renaissance

6 Questions

Q1.
Match the keywords below to the correct definitions.
Correct Answer:authority ,the power to give orders, make decisions and enforce obedience
tick

the power to give orders, make decisions and enforce obedience

Correct Answer:freedom ,the natural liberty to act as one wishes
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the natural liberty to act as one wishes

Correct Answer:sovereign ,a supreme ruler
tick

a supreme ruler

Correct Answer:the state of nature, a concept that imagines life without society or government
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a concept that imagines life without society or government

Correct Answer:thought experiment ,a philosophical tool to test ideas in hypothetical situations
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a philosophical tool to test ideas in hypothetical situations

Q2.
When Hobbes wrote, 'Imagine men without civil society', what was he asking us to imagine?
a world where there was no philosophy or deep thinking
a world where there was no religion or ethics
Correct answer: a world where there were no governments or laws
Q3.
What did Hobbes think would happen if people lived in a state of nature?
Correct answer: there would be conflict and chaos
there would be peace and harmony
things would not be any different to how they are now
Q4.
Which of the following is true of what Hobbes believed?
that freedom is bad
Correct answer: that unlimited freedom leads to chaos
that all humans should be free to act according to their natures
Q5.
What is the name of Hobbes' theory which refers to an arrangement between two or more people or groups, where each promises to do something for the other?
Correct answer: a social contract
the state of nature
a thought experiment
Q6.
Who did Hobbes believe should have absolute authority?
the Church
God
humans
Correct answer: sovereigns