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Saturday, April 13, 2024

Time to revisit Hobbes’s social contract

According to the social contract theory by eminent sociologist Thomas Hobbes: society came into being as a means for the protection of men against the consequences of their own nature.

Clouds of despondency have taken over the entire country for the last few days as reports unveiled myriad of cases of human violation taking place. The horrifying stories have culminated in depression and apprehensions. social contract

The issue is not unvaried rather multifaceted exposing the lawlessness, inefficient implementation of laws, illiteracy, poor upbringing and lack of empathy towards other fellow beings. This evil can only be resolved by collaborative endeavours towards the formulation of robust social order.

Laws and their implementation play a pivotal role in bringing about social order in society. Why are regulations necessary? Because they act as a deterrence against all kinds of evils by defining boundaries that should never be transgressed.

Read More: Powerful above the law: making the case for all the Uzmas

Social contract theory 

According to the social contract theory by eminent sociologist Thomas Hobbes: society came into being as a means for the protection of men against the consequences of their own nature.

Man in the state of nature was in perpetual conflict as neighbours on account of their own selfish nature. The life of man was solitary poor, nasty, brutish and short. Every man was an enemy to every other man.

Hobbes, in his book “Leviathan”, has made it clear that man found nothing but grief in the company of his fellows. Since the condition in this state of nature was intolerable, and man longed for peace, the people entered into a kind of social contract to ensure for themselves security and certainty of life and property.

In order to escape from this and to gain certainty and security, men made a contract to enter into a civil society or the state, called the social contract.

Religion also has the same essence and importance in life as it guides humans about the boundaries they must adhere to.

Read More: Pakistan’s biggest issue is rule of law not corruption

Importance of changing mindset 

Laws and its implementation are sin qua non to curb these events from happening. Still, the change in the mindset is the rudimentary requirement in producing a society of high moral standards.

Education is the most potent tool that transforms an individual from being uncivilised to a civilised person. Unfortunately, the literacy rate in Pakistan is very low and the education being imparted is not of the desired quality and standard.

The society also is at the verge of collapse as the deterioration in the values is flagrant. The role of the media that we endured in the 90s has certainly educated us to be a better human being. Conversely, the media today is mostly busy in showing the extramarital and illicit affairs.

Moreover, the society is being witnessed to only sob and cry over the devasted state of affairs; shying away from showing any belief in the notion that “do what you can.”

Every human can play their part in the making of society either by raising the voice, educating children and working for a better and prosperous country. Unfortunately, most of us are involved in some kind of corruption, and the collective ramifications of that is what we come across through these misadventures. What if the police had played its role efficiently? social contract 

What if we had taken part in the development of institutions? What if we has volunteered in child education?

Therefore, these issues are unvaried and multifaceted requiring collective efforts to give it a synergistic effect. Ergo, all that we can do is “do what we can”, and most definitely we will turn things around.

Talha Naqvi is an ACCA qualified individual – worked with one of the big four firms (Earnest and Young) as a forensic accountant, statutory auditor, and as an accountant in other listed companies in Karachi. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Global Village Space.