The conception of man in a state of nature varies from author to author.
According to Hobbes, all humans are by nature equal in physical and psychological faculties. From this equality and other causes in human nature, everyone is naturally willing to fight each other.
For Locke, in the state of nature all men are free so that each one may order his actions and dispose of possessions and persons as he deems appropiate, within the limits of the law of nature.
Montesquieu affirms the thought process in humans before the formation of society. He said that human beings can have the faculty of knowing and thinking first about preserving their life in the state of nature. Humans can feel helpless and weak at first. Therefore, human beings in this state aren't capable of attacking themselves. Afterwards, humanity seeks food and, due to fear and sexual needs, eventually creates a society. Once the society is created, a state of war occurs between the different societies where they were all created in the same way. The purpose of war is the preservation of society and individuals. The formation of law within society is the reflection and application of reason.
Hobbe's point of view was challenged in the 18th century by Jean Jacques Rousseau, who said that Hobbes took socialized people and simply imagined them living outside the society in which they were raised. He affirms that people are not good or bad, but that they are born as a blank slate and the society and environment influence in which direction we support ourselves. In Rousseau's state of nature, people did not know each other enough to get into a conflict and they had normal values.
