Final answer:
According to Bossuet, without an absolute monarch, society would spiral into disorder and chaos. Bossuet, along with other political theorists like Hobbes and Burke, believed in the necessity of a strong centralized authority to maintain social and political order and prevent anarchy.
Step-by-step explanation:
According to Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet, a defender of the “divine right of kings,” the absence of an absolute leader would lead to disorder and chaos. Bossuet believed that a monarchy was a necessary force for maintaining social and political order, as he thought that an absolute monarch was chosen by God and therefore had a legitimate authority that could not be contested by the people or other secular powers. This view was echoed by Thomas Hobbes who also felt that a strong centralized authority was crucial to preventing the natural state of chaos that would occur in its absence.
Indeed, Hobbes presented the idea of life without a central authority as a “state of nature,” characterized by anarchy and a ruthless struggle for power. He described such a state as "Darwinian," implying that life would be a survival of the fittest scenario. Additionally, Edmond Burke, another advocate for strong leadership, feared that giving power to the “mob” instead of the noble class could lead to disastrous consequences, a belief substantiated during the French Revolution's Reign of Terror.