Who has read Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes

H

husker rob

All-American
what is he trying to say here?

“If a covenant be made, wherein neither of the parties perform presently, but trust one another; in the condition of mere nature, which is a condition of war of every man against every man, upon any reasonable suspicion, it is void; but if there be a common power set over them both, with right and force sufficient to compel performance, it is not void. For he that performeth first, has no assurance the other will perform after; because the bonds of words are too weak to bridle men’s ambition, avarice, anger and other passions, without the fear of some coercive power; which in the condition of mere nature, where all men are equal, and judges of the justness of their own fears, cannot possibly be supposed. And therefore he which performeth first, does but betray himself to his enemy; contrary to the right, he can never abandon, of defending his life, and means of living.”

 
A contract is not enforceable absent consideration. Consideration is a legal term that generally means something of value in exchange for performance. While that is most commonly money, it can be something else. The consideration must generally be mutual. Also, a contract must be something that is enforceable by nature or by law. As an example of the latter, most gambling contracts are not enforceable in law because most jurisdictions don't permit gambling. An example of the latter would be a contract in which the performance is impossible - a contract to repeal gravity is one.

This shouldn't be confused with an oral contract - oral contracts are just as valid (with some exceptions - sales of land, etc., are commonly required by law to be in writting) as written contracts. Rather, the writer is indicating that mere promises of future performance - absent any consideration or recourse in a breech - are not valid or enforceable contracts.

 
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