Overview
This lecture introduces and summarizes Rousseau’s key political works, especially The Social Contract, focusing on the foundation of legitimate political authority, the development of inequality, the role of the “social contract,” and the concept of the general will.
Historical Context & Rousseau’s Influence
- Understanding philosophers requires considering their historical context.
- Rousseau influenced both the French Revolution and modern education and political theory.
- His work marks a shift from medieval to modern political thought, impacting Kant and Hegel.
Rousseau’s Major Works & Development of Thought
- Discourse on the Arts and Sciences (1750): Civilization corrupts morals; “nature” is idealized.
- Discourse on the Origin of Inequality (1755): “Natural man” is a theoretical abstraction; society introduces inequality.
- Discourse on Political Economy: Introduces “general will”; links state legitimacy to the public good.
- The Social Contract (1762): Seeks principles of legitimate political right and civil freedom.
The Social Contract: Core Concepts
- Asks if political authority can be legitimate (“men are born free, but everywhere in chains”).
- Proposes the “social contract”: individuals unite under the general will, gaining civil liberty in exchange for natural liberty.
- Sovereignty belongs to the people and is inalienable and indivisible.
- Laws must express the general will and apply equally.
- Distinguishes between government (executive) and sovereignty (will of the people).
Forms of Government & Sovereignty
- Democracy suits small states; aristocracy for middling; monarchy for large.
- The general will cannot be represented; direct participation is ideal, though challenging in large states.
- Representative government was critiqued for weakening popular sovereignty.
The General Will
- General will: collective will aiming at the common good, distinct from individual or group interests.
- It guides laws and legitimizes political obligation.
- True freedom is obedience to laws one has helped create.
Political Economy & Public Good
- The state’s main duty is the well-being of all citizens.
- Advocates for taxation based on ability and the public financing of state functions.
- Recognizes the challenges between private interests and the common good.
Inequality & Society
- Inequality arises with property, labor, and the development of society.
- The first claim to property marked the shift from natural equality to social hierarchy.
- Political and social institutions often reinforce, rather than remedy, inequality.
Key Terms & Definitions
- State of Nature — Hypothetical early human condition without government or social institutions.
- Social Contract — Agreement where individuals form a collective body politic, surrendering some freedoms for civil liberty.
- General Will — The collective will of the people aiming at the common good.
- Sovereignty — Ultimate authority, vested in the collective people.
- Civil Liberty — Freedom gained under laws of the state, distinct from natural liberty.
- Property — Legitimate ownership arising only from labor and convention, not nature.
Action Items / Next Steps
- Read The Social Contract, Books I–IV, focusing on the definition and implications of the social contract and general will.
- Review Rousseau’s Discourse on Inequality for views on human nature and society’s development.
- Prepare a summary of differences between Rousseau’s and Hobbes’s versions of the social contract.