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according to hobbes, what is the fundamental reason for acting? group of answer choices self-interest altruism virtue none of the above

User Sam Mullin
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Final answer:

Thomas Hobbes posits that self-interest is the fundamental reason for human action, as it leads to the formation of a social contract to escape the perilous state of nature and ensure peace, stability, and order under an absolute monarch.

Step-by-step explanation:

According to Thomas Hobbes, the fundamental reason for acting is self-interest. Hobbes believed that in a state of nature without rules and a social contract, life would be 'solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short' due to constant competition and fear among individuals. To escape this, people enter into a social contract where they transfer their natural rights and power to a monarch in exchange for peace, stability, and order. This monarch must have absolute authority for effective governance. Therefore, in Hobbesian thought, self-preservation motivates individuals to surrender their freedoms, resulting in a government that is vested with the authority to provide safety and prevent anarchy.

User PeterV
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