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Thomas Hobbes by Alfred Edward Taylor, LibriVox audio reading

Alfred Edward Taylor

A modern volunteer audio reading of A. E. Taylor's study of Hobbes's life and philosophical ideas.

This secondary study, here heard as a modern volunteer reading, explains Hobbes's main philosophical ideas.

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Alfred Edward Taylor, Thomas Hobbes. LibriVox volunteer audio reading, read by Jim Locke.

About this source

What it is

This is a LibriVox recording of a short book by Alfred Edward Taylor about Thomas Hobbes, part of a 'Philosophies Ancient and Modern' series of primers. The audio itself is a volunteer reading made recently, not any historical recording, read aloud by a LibriVox volunteer.

Why it matters

Taylor's book introduces Hobbes's key ideas, including the contract, sovereignty, natural law, and the relationship between church and state, showing how twentieth-century scholars summarised Hobbes's philosophy for general readers.

Look closer

  • Why is it important to know this audio is a modern reading and not Hobbes's own voice?
  • What major ideas of Hobbes does Taylor choose to highlight, and why might those be considered his most important?
  • How might a short popular 'primer' like this simplify Hobbes's complex ideas?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Thomas Hobbes on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

More Thomas Hobbes sources

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Engraved title page of Hobbes's Leviathan: a giant crowned figure made of many tiny people holds a sword and crozier over a landscape of hills and a city. Below, a central banner bears the title and author's name, flanked by vignettes of castle, church, crown, mitre, cannon, weapons, battle, and a council.Book

Primary source

Leviathan

Thomas Hobbes · 1651

Engraved frontispiece of the 1642 Paris edition of Hobbes's De Cive. Top panel shows a crowded scene of figures in clouds and a fiery landscape with a winged angel and a group of people. Bottom panel has a central banner titled Elementorum Philosophiae Sectio Tertia De Cive with Latin text, flanked by a crowned female figure holding scales labeled Imperium and a figure with a bow and spear labeled Libertas, with a landscape and the word Religio across the middle.Book

Primary source

De Cive

Thomas Hobbes · 1642

Line engraving portrait of Thomas Hobbes, a man with long wavy hair, a large white collar, and dark robes, shown in an oval frame inscribed with his name in Latin. Below is a Latin inscription and the printer's line 'London, Printed for Will. Crooke'.Painting

Secondary source

Portrait of Thomas Hobbes, Line Engraving

Book

Primary source

The Elements of Law

Thomas Hobbes · 1640

Engraved title page reading 'The Workes of Homer Engl: by T: Hobbes', with a bust of Homer above, two armoured warriors with spears flanking the title, and an oval portrait of Hobbes below. Imprint reads London, printed for W. Crooke, 1677.Artifact

Secondary source

Title Page of The Workes of Homer, Translated by Thomas Hobbes

1677

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