social contract theory

Syllable breakdown

Dictionary meaning

a foundational framework in political philosophy proposing that political authority and obligation derive from an (actual or hypothetical) agreement among individuals to surrender certain freedoms in exchange for the benefits of organised society and government protection; developed in distinct forms by Thomas Hobbes, who saw the contract as a surrender of all rights to a sovereign for security; John Locke, who grounded it in natural rights and consent with a right of revolution; and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who emphasised collective self-governance and the general will