Almanac of law. Issue 16 (2025), pages 421–426.

DOI: 10.33663/2524-017X-2025-16-421-426

Ponomarenko N. V.
Peculiarities of understanding the essential content and features of theories of the emergence of the state in modern times

It is noted that the study of the process of emergence of the State is of both theoretical and practical importance, since it focuses on the peculiarities of the doctrinal approaches of scholars of different eras and clarifies the dependence of the formation of the State on a certain stage of society’s development and the directions of its influence on ensuring the systemic nature of society.

 Through the use of phenomenological, axiological, communicative, systemic scientific approaches; dialectical, metaphysical philosophical and worldview methods and general scientific comparative, historical and abstraction methods, the author obtains objective knowledge of the doctrinal understanding of the emergence of the state organization of society and its dependence on the level of development of social interaction.

It is proved that the period of modern times is the most productive stage in the formation of doctrinal ideas of the emergence of the State, which had a significant impact on the development of further stages of forming ideas about the process of the State’s emergence. The author clarifies the essential content and peculiarities of theories of the State’s emergence in the period under study by establishing their philosophical, methodological, epistemological and theological foundations.

It is noted that new approaches to the process of emergence of the State in the period of modern times integrate intellectual traditions of the past and enrich them with new paradigms.

Particular attention is paid to the characterization of the social contract theory by Thomas Hobbes, which is based on the principle of purposeful consent of fundamentally equal people who are able to sacrifice their own natural freedoms to establish a sovereign government capable of ensuring peace and protection.

Attention is drawn to two circumstances which, according to Hobbes, determined the content of the logic of transition from the natural state to the State — achievement of mutual purposeful consent of fundamentally loyal people to the establishment of sovereign power and the destructive nature of natural human rights, their selfishness, which can be overcome by the sovereign, which is the State.

Attention is drawn to the peculiarities of B. Spinoza’s contractual theory, which emphasizes the natural nature of the social contract for the establishment of the State, which meets the natural need to live safely and is conscious, as well as S. Pufendorf’s ideas about the process of emergence of the State through association agreements, subordination and intervention of the supreme instrument of government.

Particular attention is paid to the characterization of the enlightenment project of J.-J. Rousseau and the concept of asocial sociality of I. Kant regarding the causes and factors of state formation, as well as the content of the organic and violent theories of the origin of the state (G. Spencer); the theory of external conquest (L. Gumplowicz); the theory of internal conquest (E. Durring); family law and patrimonial theories (G. Ellinek).

Key words: state, emergence of the state, theories, concepts, positivism, sociological concept, natural law, social contract, law.

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