Hobbes held that law always invades liberty regardless of its character
Evidence
If the essence of government is defined as lawfulness, and if it is understood that laws are the stabilizing forces in the public affairs of men (as indeed it always has been since Plato invoked Zeus, the god of the boundaries, in his Laws), then the problem of movement of the body politic and the actions of its citizens arises. Lawfulness sets limitations to actions, but does not inspire them; the greatness, but also the perplexity of laws in free societies is that they only tell what one should not, but never what one should do. — Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, 1054 (
#qualifies, via linked claim)
Categorization
- XREF: connects to: Hobbes redefined liberty as the absence of coercion rather than non-domination — Philip Pettit, Republicanism: A Theory of Freedom and…, 200; Laws restrain action but never inspire it — Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, 1054; Hobbes defined liberty as the mere absence of legal coercion. — Philip Pettit, Republicanism: A Theory of Freedom and…, 201
Related
- Laws restrain action but never inspire it (similarity 0.88)
- Hobbes defined liberty as the mere absence of legal coercion. (similarity 0.87)
- Hobbes redefined liberty as the absence of coercion rather than non-domination (similarity 0.83)
- On the interference view, all law restricts liberty and freedom is only residual discretion. (similarity 0.78)
Broader Connections
- Laws restrain action but never inspire it
#qualifies(0.80) — Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, 1054