“Aquinas and Hobbes
Views
On
“Natural Law”

November 5/08
Snezana Miletic
20217149
PHIL 221
Paul Simard Smith
Assignment # 2
(with extension)
The theory of “Natural Law” first originated in Ancient Greece. Many philosophers discussed their own views on natural law, as it played an important part in Greek government. Some of these philosophers included St. Thomas Aquinas and Thomas Hobbes. For Aquinas, natural law exists in the individual’s conscience, opposing to Hobbes belief that individuals had limited access to virtue, and therefore needed to be coerced into doing good by the state. Throughout their views of natural law, each is vital to show an idea of how human beings and the government should function in the world.
In the book Classics of Western Moral Theory, Aquinas states that “Law is a measure of action by which one is led to act or refrain” (Aquinas, 69). The idea of natural law is that moral ideals are derived from the nature of......

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Title: Aquinas Vs. Hobbes On Natural Law
Approximate Word Count: 1219
Approximate Pages: 5 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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