Rousseau criticizes that the natural law defined by Hobbes depends on egoism. According to him, Hobbes lacked virtues, and egoism was a confirmed trait of his personality. In the case of Hobbes, passion and reasoning play a significant role in his description of the state that makes it different from other forms of state. Savage and enlightenment dazzled Hobbes and reflected through his views. Rousseau is not entirely correct in explaining Hobbes as he portrays him as an evil person with no virtues. Compared to Rousseau, Thomas Aquinas presents the Godly side of the character.
Rousseau argues that the desire to attain new knowledge makes a person disconnected from natural law. Hobbes revealed the flaws in the modern explanation of natural rights, and the consequences that he draws do not make his argument and revelations false or less influential. The comparison of different definitions presented on egoism depicts the difficulty of explaining the term. The meaning of egoism changes among philosophers. Hobbes explains the role of psychological egoism that encourages people to act in their best interests. People, when they choose actions that maximize their return, is egoism. Psychological egoism makes ethics useless. Hobbes explains that self-interest provokes people to adopt certain actions that lead to their advantage.
The ring of Gyges argues that people are naturally selfish, and they choose actions to attain maximum benefit. There is a distinction between ethical- egoism and rational egoism. Ethical egoism does not allow people to choose actions that result in their best interests. Rational egoism depends on the rationality of events and does not necessarily end in a person’s self-interest. Ethical egoism refers to the action that is right for the person in a certain condition. Gyges considers a person stupid and unwise who does not take advantage of the situation, and the event does not result in his best- interest. The ring of Gyges defends psychological egoism and recognizes it as a rational decision.
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