Leviathan
Leviathan by Thomas Hobbesby Thomas Hobbes
Hacker ApprovedThe most recommended of 7 political philosophy books
Recommended as a foundational text on how political power and society are organized, still relevant and clearly argued. No critic-agreed caveat.
Recommended as a foundational text on how political power and society are organized, still relevant and clearly argued. No critic-agreed caveat.
11 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 11
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 6 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 11 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 6 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Foundational, comprehensive argument on society
“It's one of the fundamental texts on societal organization from a few centuries ago.”
Comment from 18 Mar 2026 in “Leviathan” “Hobbes gives a far more comprehensive argument than Locke does.”
Comment from 18 Mar 2026 in “Leviathan” Still relevant centuries later
“I can read Hobbes here today in the 21st century and still find the pessimistic core of his book powerful and relevant”
Comment from 18 Mar 2026 in “Leviathan” “It's one of the fundamental texts on societal organization from a few centuries ago.”
Comment from 18 Mar 2026 in “Leviathan” Short, enjoyable to read
“Its not very long, but I use this in my daily life”
Comment from 16 Feb 2026 in “Privilege Is Bad Grammar” “Hobbes I can respect and enjoy reading.”
Comment from 18 Mar 2026 in “Leviathan”
Other political philosophy books people recommend
The four most recommended other political philosophy books, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leviathanby Thomas HobbesThis page | 11 | 0 | 100% | 6 | — | Approved |
| Capitalist Realismby Mark Fisher | 7 | 0 | 100% | 6 | — | — |
| The Princeby Niccolò Machiavelli | 5 | 1 | 83% | 4 | — | — |
| The Federalist Papersby Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay | 4 | 1 | 80% | 2 | — | — |
| Politicsby Aristotle | 3 | 0 | 100% | 4 | — | — |
What people said
9 of the 11 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“wrong metaphor, read leviathan by hobbes”
“check Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes if you're interested”
“I can read Hobbes here today in the 21st century and still find the pessimistic core of his book powerful and relevant”
“Hobbes gives a far more comprehensive argument than Locke does.”
“Hobbes I can respect and enjoy reading.”
“he is giving an interesting explanation of how political power actually work”
“It's one of the fundamental texts on societal organization from a few centuries ago.”
“It's fully open source. Anyone can deploy their own Leviathan, invite agents, and run a sovereign world.”
“Its not very long, but I use this in my daily life”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.