Philosophy of Society

Political Philosophy (Theory of the State)

The State and the Selfish Nature of Man

Not all thinkers of the past believed that the state was founded on the inherent goodness of human nature. There were those who thought that the basis of the state lay in human selfishness. For example, the foundation of medieval political thought, as with much of the worldview of that time, was Christianity. Since, in Christianity, man is viewed as God’s creation—and everything created by God is good—man, too, is considered good. However, man sinned and allowed evil into his life, making earthly existence a narrative of spiritual rises and falls. One of the foremost figures in medieval political thought was Saint Augustine (354—430). He believed that human history was a tension between two types of civilization: the City of God and the City of Man. The City of God represents the ideal social order in accordance with divine providence. Yet, through sin, humanity distanced itself from this ideal and began to construct the City of Man—a society where injustice and hatred prevail, the strong oppress the weak, and happiness remains out of reach. The Church, a beacon of God’s city, is a space of love and grace. But fallen man is not ready to accept God’s Law and live by it. To enforce moral and legal order upon those unwilling to follow divine commandments voluntarily, coercive power is required. This power is the state. Therefore, according to Augustine, the state is a necessary evil that curtails the sinful nature of man. Once mankind turns back to God, the state will become obsolete and vanish.
It is important to note that Augustine’s political theory emerged during times of political crisis. He was a bishop in North Africa during the barbarian invasions of Rome. Refugees fleeing the horrors of war in Italy came to North Africa, and through them, Augustine learned of the atrocities occurring in Italy. As a philosopher and theologian, he had to explain these manifestations of evil without abandoning the Christian belief that humanity, like all of God's creation, was made good.
The sixteenth century brought profound changes to Europe. The Reformation and the civil wars it triggered throughout the continent led to widespread disillusionment. Whereas Europeans had once believed in the essential goodness of human nature, they now witnessed humanity’s baser instincts on full display. This disillusionment drove European philosophers to proclaim the nature of man as inherently evil. This shift in the understanding of human nature had an impact on political theory. Since Plato, Aristotle, and other ancient and medieval philosophers had viewed man as inherently good, they had described the state as an environment where man's good qualities could flourish. But now, with humanity reinterpreted as selfish, the state's role shifted. It was no longer seen as an institution that nurtured the development of human potential, but rather one that restrained and limited the expression of man's true nature. If humans are inherently good, it is fitting to help them develop their tendencies; if humans are inherently evil, their tendencies must be curbed and controlled through coercive means.
One of the first philosophers to distrust the common people and popular rule was the Frenchman Jean Bodin (1529—1596). He believed that the best form of government was a hereditary monarchy. In Bodin’s view, the people are a multi-headed beast devoid of reason, and under no circumstances should power be entrusted to them. Authority must remain in the hands of one individual. Furthermore, the monarchy should be hereditary, so that the people cannot intervene even when a new monarch is to be chosen. Yet even an absolute monarch must be bound by God’s Law. The primary responsibility of the monarch is to resolve the social conflicts within his realm, which stem from the unjust distribution of goods and freedoms. Therefore, the monarch must ensure that everyone has adequate conditions for a dignified life.
A political theory based on the belief that man is selfish and motivated solely by self-interest was developed by the English philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588—1679). Hobbes argued that people are selfish and care only for themselves, stopping at nothing in their pursuit of personal gain. To him belongs the famous phrase "Homo homini lupus est" (Man is a wolf to man). In Hobbes' view, in the state of nature, before the existence of the state, human beings lived in a condition of war, with each against all. People recognized that such a state could lead to humanity’s extinction. To avoid this fate, they formed a social contract, establishing a state and selecting a monarch, to whom they ceded some of their rights in exchange for the guarantee of security. For example, a citizen agreed never to commit murder, while the monarch retained the right to impose the death penalty; in return, the monarch guaranteed to protect the citizen from unlawful killing. Thus, Hobbes became one of the founders of social contract theory, positing that the foundation of the state and authority lies not in human goodness or divine will, but in the necessity of protecting humanity from its own selfishness. He expounded his political views in his work "Leviathan." By naming the state after the biblical sea monster, Hobbes emphasized that the state is a terrifying force that man must submit to, but without it, life would be even more unbearable.
After Hobbes, politics became an inseparable theme in English philosophy. In the Enlightenment and subsequent centuries, utilitarianism—the belief that human selfishness could be harnessed for the common good—became the dominant theme in English moral philosophy. Jeremy Bentham, considered the founder of utilitarianism, held that every person seeks their own advantage. However, this pursuit is not evil. It is evil to want nothing at all, but to desire something good and useful, whether for oneself or for others, is a virtuous motive. Since achieving benefits is easier through collective effort than individual labor, people find it advantageous to combine their efforts. Anyone who desires to live in a prosperous country with a developed economy, quality education, and robust social protection cannot achieve this alone, nor solely for themselves. To realize personal gain, one must cooperate with others, thereby enabling all to benefit. Thus, even selfish desires can serve as a source of the common good.
Building on this idea, the American philosopher Thomas Paine (1737—1809) made a clear distinction between society and the state. He argued that there is a vast difference between the two concepts. Humanity possesses both good and evil tendencies. To achieve good aspirations in cooperation with others, people form societies, while the state is created to restrain the evil tendencies of individuals. Thus, the state's domain includes all that requires coercion and is associated with evil traits: the military, police, judiciary, taxation, and so on. But education, culture, civic activities, and religion belong to the realm of civil society, where the government should not interfere. This is why, in the United States, all universities are independent and not governed by a unified law, unlike in continental Europe.