Hobbism

American  

[hob-iz-uhm] / ˈhɒb ɪz əm /

noun

1. the doctrines of, or those attributed to, Hobbes, especially the doctrine of absolute submission to a royal sovereign in order to avoid the anarchic disorder resulting from the uncontrolled competition of individual interests.

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Hobbism British  

/ ˈhɒbɪzəm /

noun

1. the mechanistic political philosophy of Thomas Hobbes, which stresses the necessity for a powerful sovereign to control human beings

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Other Word Forms

• Hobbist
  noun
• Hobbistical
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of Hobbism

First recorded in 1675–85; Hobb(es) + -ism

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Hobbism

As against this fashionable Hobbism, Parker pleads Conscience.

From Andrew Marvell by John Morley

His mind had long oscillated between Hobbism and Popery.

From The History of England, from the Accession of James II — Volume 1 by Thomas Babington Macaulay, Baron Macaulay

He seems to have passed his life in dawdling suspense between Hobbism and Popery.

From Critical and Historical Essays — Volume 1 by Thomas Babington Macaulay, Baron Macaulay

Though the Restoration brought Hobbes a pension his two great works were condemned by Parliament, and Hobbism became ere he died a popular synonym for political as well as religious immorality.

From History of the English People, Volume VI Puritan England, 1642-1660; The Revolution, 1660-1683 by John Richard Green

It is not, however, in this, which is only the old Cyrenaic or Epicurean answer, that the distinctive point of Hobbism lies.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 7 "Equation" to "Ethics" by Various

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