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Why Thomas Hobbes should be included in the Philosophical canon

Hobbes should be included in the curriculum and the philosophical canon because of his radically innovative reimagining of human nature and political power. He laid the ground for modern liberalism by creating the modern contract theory and the conceptual device of state of nature. He also acted as an example of the first great modern systemizer, setting the example for Kant, Hegel, and Marx. He also dramatically altered the concept of power itself. For all pre-modern philosophers, the amount of power in the world is limited and usually declining, and the goal of political philosophy was to prevent the decline by preventing corruption. Hobbes, however, imagined power to be infinite and potentially perpetual expanding, though this idea would only be fully embraced after the industrial revolution by liberal economists. Still, given that modern civilization is perpetually expanding its power, Hobbes was definitely the first modern political philosopher. Combined with his intellectual contributions to liberalism, Hobbes deserves to be a part of the philosophical canon..