Why humans leave the state of nature to enter into civil society Introduction The state of nature concept in philosophy is used in international law and social contract theory to represent the hypothetical state that people’s lives’ might have been prior to the existence of civil and communal societies. The presumption that organized societies were preceded by such period of time is what has raised questions regarding how life was like before the rise of civil societies, how nation governments emerged from such initial state, and the reasons for leaving such state to enter to a civil society. Different philosophers have offered similar as well as varying perspectives regarding why people decide to abandon the state of nature and choose to be bound by civil authorities in civil societies. Some of the most notable philosophers who have informed this area include Thomas Hobbes, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, John Locke, Plato, and Glaucon among others.