Thomas Hobbes was an English philosopher who became an exile because of his political beliefs. He tutored the Prince of Wales in Paris and was a friend with such greats as Ben Jonson, Francis Bacon, Sidney Godolphin, as well as Galileo and Mersenne. His guiding principle was that as nothing can exist which is not material, thought must be in motion. He believed that man is an automaton; thought is a motion in his brain; all his actions can be explained by the laws of motion, like the motion of a clock. This is a brilliant introduction to the life and thought of one of the most conspicuous English thinkers.