In conclusion, it is seen how Hobbes' outlook on human nature is difficult to interpret. One hand the fact that he argues that it is a fact that man in the state of nature has a need for survival, and that that in itself is an intrinsic instinct within humanity. This is suggests that inherently, human nature is primitive, and that put into a state of nature, we would be reduced to animals, a state of ultimate selfishness that is needed for survival. Yet the fact that human beings possess the faculty of reason, promotes an optimistic view on human nature. It is reason that separates us from the animal world and it is reason that allowed us to establish civilised systems of government across the world. The fact that many people in the system causes it to 'malfunction' by crime and terrorism does not necessarily provide a bleak outlook. We do not live in a state of nature, thus our systems, although they might have problems, obviously work, suggesting that Hobbes' ideas on human nature were not completely pessimistic, and this is because humans possess the faculty of reason.…
