Other's view on sovereignty

Views Jean Bodin Thomas Hobbes John Locke Jean Jacques Rousseau Hugo Grotius Duguit

Jean Bodin Jean Bodin is a great philosopher/ lawyer, who advocates about sovereignty. He analyzed sovereignty that makes states separate from individuals, family and society. Sovereignty is that supreme power over citizens and subjects unrestrained by law. It is the absolute and perpetual power of the state, that is, the greatest power to command. If power be held only for a certain time (it does not matter how long a time),it is not sovereign power, and he who holds it for that time is not a sovereign prince, but only a trustee or custodian of that power so long as it pleases the real prince (or the people) not to revoke it.

Thomas Hobbes According Hobbes, sovereignty was a result of social contract. He said, sovereign was already there and he was not party of social contract and there was no any limitation on his authority, which was absolute and indivisible. He said, sovereign can take action against people if they revolt against sovereignty. He claimed, sovereignty could be in one person or a body of persons.

John Locke Locke also accepts the sovereignty as result of social contract. But, Locke was against the absolute power of sovereign. He said, ultimate powers reside in the hand of people. Function of sovereign was merely to interpret and execute the rights, which the people had in the state of nature. He argues that, the people have the right to revolt against the sovereign if he did not fulfill the duties which were given to him by the people.

Jean Jacques Rousseau According to Rousseau, sovereignty is the exercise of the general will/common will of the people. He said, power can be transmitted, but not the will. The sovereignty, by this way, cannot also be transmitted. By the way of social contract, all the individual gave up all the rights which they possessed in the state of the nature to the sovereign which in the hand of people. He stood people's sovereignty as popular sovereignty, which is absolute, indivisible, infallible/perfect and inalienable.

Hugo Grotius Sovereignty is the supreme political power vested in him whose acts are not subject to any other power and whose will/desire cannot be overridden.

Duguit Sovereignty is the commanding power of the state, the will of nation organized in the state; the right to give unconditional orders to all individuals in the territory of the state.