Abstract

Offers an introduction to Hobbes's life, paying special attention to his family background, his education, his relations with his employers, and his connections with the various intellectual groups, which may have influenced his thinking—such as the ‘Great Tew’ circle in England, and the Mersenne circle in France. It also discusses the notoriety that followed the publication of Leviathan in 1651, and the polemics that dogged his later years.