ABSTRACT
The paradigm of philosophical knowledge for Hobbes is, notoriously, the mode of demonstration in Euclid's geometry and his paradigm of giving a philosophical definition is the instruction for how to generate a perfect circle. Hobbess rhetorical use of metaphor is sometimes taken at face value, and his political philosophy is accordingly understood as informing us about how to create a commonwealth in order to pacify interpersonal relations by agreeing to establish an authority that constitutes and enacts a legal order. The most striking aspect of Hobbess use of the social contract model is his transformation of the traditional two-step structure, pactum unionis followed by pactum subjectionis, into a single act of authorisation. Hobbess general strategy of improving the effectiveness of legal order, by defining legal regulations more precisely and making sure that they will be applied, can easily be extended beyond Hobbess own philosophical interests to interstate relations.
