Leviathan

Or, the Matter, Forme and Power of a Common Wealth Ecclesiasticall and Civil

By: Thomas Hobbes

Narrated by: Peter Wickham

Born out of the political turmoil of the English Civil War, Leviathan stands out as one of the most in influential political and philosophical texts of the 17th century. It argues for the restoration of the monarchy in light of the republic and calls for a commonwealth ruled by an authoritative, autocratic figure with absolute sovereignty. This would put an end to all controversy, war, and fear and establish peace via social contract. Over the course of the book, Hobbes targets Christianity and contemporary philosophic methods, rejecting the idea of spirits and souls and arguing for a philosophy to end divisiveness and provide indisputable conclusions. These highly controversial theses led to book burnings in 1666 and Hobbes being dubbed the 'Monster of Malmsbury'.

Download the accompanying reference guide.Public Domain (P)2017 Naxos AudioBooks

Interesting but dense

This is a very dense drudge through definitions and compounding concepts to come to (questionable) conclusions. Worth listening to as a historical document.

Definitely worth the listen

Leviathan is a massive book that could be challenging to fast read, but with audible it’s more digestible. There are definitely many ideas in Leviathan that are worth returning to Kindle and reading what was heard.