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Philosophy

Social Contract Theory: Hobbes, Locke, and Rousseau

Quick fact

Despite sharing the label 'social contract,' the three philosophers reached wildly different conclusions: Hobbes justified absolute monarchy, Locke defended constitutional democracy and revolution, and Rousseau proposed direct democracy, believed that we are born free yet 'everywhere in chains.'

Why this is interesting

Have you ever wondered why we obey laws we never directly agreed to? Political philosophers like Hobbes, Locke, and Rousseau answered this with a simple yet radical idea: society is built on an invisible contract.