Hobbes’s hidden monster
A new interpretation of the frontispiece of Leviathan
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6259913 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Magnus Kristiansson (Uppsala University), Johan Tralau (Uppsala University) |
| Year | 2014 |
| Volume | 13 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 299-320 |
| Publication date | 2014-07-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | European Journal of Political Theory (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1474-8851 • E-ISSN: 1741-2730 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1177/1474885113491954 |
| OpenAlex | W1992390749 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 13 |
| References cited | 1 |
In recent years, much work has been done on the role of images in Hobbes. But there is an unsolved riddle with regard to the famous frontispiece of Leviathan (1651). Why is there nothing monstrous in the sovereign body depicted, despite the fact that it is named for a Biblical sea monster? In this article it is argued that there is a monster just barely hidden in the image and that the iconographical tradition helps us rediscover this creature. We argue that this monstrosity serves a theoretical and political purpose pertaining to fear and imagery within Hobbes’s overall project and in the political context of his time. Moreover, we argue that the discovery of the hitherto unknown monster should make political theory and intellectual history sensitive to the role played by physical images in Hobbes as well as in political thought at large
Archaeology · Art · Context (archaeology · Epistemology · Interpretation (philosophy · LEVIATHAN (cipher · Literature · Monster · Nothing · Political philosophy · Political science · Politics · Sovereignty · History · Law · Philosophy · Seventeenth-Century Political and Philosophical Thought
Hobbes y sus monstruos
Meek’s Cutoff , Hobbes and the Ambiguities of Political Foundation
Life, Death, and the Political
Sight Unseen
Jurisdictional Culture and Memory Digitization of the “Government of Justice.” Data Modeling and Digital Approach for the Legal History of Ibero-America
From I Samuel 8 to Genesis 1
Hobbes’ Frontispiece
Masculine Power? A Gendered Look at the Frontispiece of Hobbes's Leviathan
The puzzle of the sovereign’s smile and the inner complexity of Hobbes’s theory of authorisation
The scholastic’s dilemma
Representing gross domestic product
Shape-Shifting Representation
Hobbes and Hats
| Citations per year | 1.08 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2014 - 2026 (13) |
| Highly cited | No |