taken from chapter 8: 'OF THE NATURAL CONDITION OF MANKIND AS CONCERNING THEIR FELICITY AND MISERY', of English philosopher, scientist, and political theorist thomas hobbes' 1651 work 'leviathan' (see also leviathan). in this chapter, hobbes describes the state of nature as follows:

[...] Whatsoever therefore is consequent to a time of war, where every man is enemy to every man, the same consequent to the time wherein men live without other security than what their own strength and their own invention shall furnish them withal. In such condition there is no place for industry, because the fruit thereof is uncertain: and consequently no culture of the earth; no navigation, nor use of the commodities that may be imported by sea; no commodious building; no instruments of moving and removing such things as require much force; no knowledge of the face of the earth; no account of time; no arts; no letters; no society; and which is worst of all, continual fear, and danger of violent death; and the life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.[...]

in 'Leviathan', hobbes (1588-1679) argues that civil peace and social unity are best achieved by the establishment of a commonwealth through social contract. Hobbes's ideal commonwealth is ruled by a sovereign power responsible for protecting the security of the commonwealth and granted absolute authority to ensure the common defense. In his introduction, Hobbes describes this commonwealth as an "artificial person" and as a body politic that mimics the human body. The frontispiece to the first edition of 'Leviathan', which Hobbes helped design, portrays the commonwealth as a gigantic human form built out of the bodies of its citizens, the sovereign as its head. Hobbes calls this figure the Leviathan. the image constitutes the definitive metaphor for Hobbes's perfect government. His text attempts to prove the necessity of absolute obedience to the Leviathan for preserving peace and preventing civil war.

Leviathan is divided into four books: "Of Man," "Of Common-wealth," "Of a Christian Common-wealth," and "Of the Kingdome of Darknesse." Book I contains the philosophical framework for the entire text, while the remaining books simply extend and elaborate the arguments presented in the initial chapters. Consequently, Book I is given the most attention in the detailed summaries that follow.

Hobbes begins his text by considering the elementary motions of matter, arguing that every aspect of human nature can be deduced from materialist principles. Hobbes depicts the natural condition of mankind - known as the state of nature - as inherently violent and awash with fear. The state of nature is the "war of every man against every man," in which people constantly seek to destroy one another. This state is so horrible that human beings naturally seek peace, and the best way to achieve peace is to construct the Leviathan through social contract. this is where the phrase "brutal nasty, this life is short" refers to.

Book II details the process of erecting the Leviathan, outlines the rights of sovereigns and subjects, and imagines the legislative and civil mechanics of the commonwealth. Book III concerns the compatibility of Christian doctrine with Hobbesian philosophy and the religious system of the Leviathan. Book IV engages in debunking false religious beliefs and arguing that the political implementation of the Leviathanic state is necessary to achieve a secure Christian commonwealth.you can read 'leviathan' online: click here.the song 'leviathan' can be seen as a critique by the manics on the way politicians today reason and act. politicians, especially western world leaders, present human life as "brutal nasty and short", stating that anyone can be killed anytime by terrorists or other "evil powers". they use this way of presenting things to create fear and to make the choice for giving up all kinds of freedom to feel safe look necessary. their way of thinking seems to be: "obey, or you will not be safe and will eventually be killed by evildoers."in this way, the manics equate the way hobbes argues for the creation of a sovereign power with the way modern politicians argue to get more and more control over the lives of people. This, of course, can especially be seen in the united states of america.