Amistad, directed by Steven Spielberg, tells the plight of a group of native Africans who are forcibly and illegally enslaved, take control of their ship, The Amistad, and the subsequent American ship legal battle. The film, based on a book based on a historical event, stays relatively close to the truth and is an accurate depiction of anti-African resentment, the abolitionist movement, and the dull justice systems of early 19th century America. As the film progressed, different views and philosophical opinions on slavery and equality began to emerge and became evident as part of the film's main theme. The moral and political philosophies of men such as Thomas Hobbes, Voltaire, Thomas Jefferson, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, important political figures of the time, reflect the time period and relate closely to Amistad. Thomas Hobbes, an outspoken and occasionally impertinent man, was an English philosopher who lived and wrote in the 17th century. Although best known for his book Leviathan and his dark views on human nature, Hobbes had much to say about the natural equality of all men. In Hobbes' day, a century before the Amistad debacle, Englishmen were less interested in skin color and more in political, religious, and social standing. Hobbes, not having been born rich or prestigious, had the incredible fortune of having a rich uncle who paid for his studies. For this reason he understood that not all men are endowed with a high position in life, but this does not make them less intelligent or more corrupt than those of the aristocracy. Hobbes fully believed that every man was essentially equal in his sins and his virtues. However, although every man is equal, this also means that every man is... the center of the paper... Works CitedAlbers, Harrie S. "Biography of Thomas Jefferson." American history. University of Groningen, 2013. Web. 17 December 2013. "Jean-Jacques Rousseau." The abolition of the slave trade. The New York Public Library, 2012. Web. 16 December 2013. .Voltaire. "What happened to them in Suriname and how Candido met Martin." White. New York: New York Public Library, 2010. Page No. Print.William Edward Burghardt Du Bois (1904). The suppression of the African slave trade in the United States of America, 1638–1870. Longman, Green. pp. 95–96. Williams, Garrath. "Thomas Hobbes: moral and political philosophy". Encyclopedia of philosophy on the Internet. Lancaster University, 5 July 2005. Web. 16 December. 2013. .