2nd half

1762

rousseau publishes on the social contract

rousseau on the social contract

A foundational text in political philosophy that outlines the concept of the social contract, detailing how individuals consent to form a community and government for the protection of their rights. It emphasizes the importance of collective agreement and the general will in the establishment of societal order. This work argues that legitimate political authority arises from a social contract agreed upon by all members of society, advocating for the principles of individual freedom and equality.

1789

the french revolution. The Revolution begins with the promise of liberty and popular government. Constant supports its goals but believes revolutionaries misunderstood liberty by trying to recreate the political participation of ancient republics.

when was The National Assembly and the Declaration of the Rights of Man, article 6

formed in 1789 representing the common people of France. It played a crucial role in asserting the rights of individuals against the monarchy. The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen outlined fundamental rights such as liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression. emphasizing that sovereignty resides in the nation rather than in a monarch.

Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, Article 6

article 6 asserts that the law is the expression of the general will. It establishes that all citizens have a right to participate in its formation, either directly or through their elected representatives. laws get legitimacy through the people

1792-1794 “the terror”

marked by extreme political repression and mass executions, primarily carried out by the revolutionary government in an effort to eliminate perceived enemies of the revolution. thousands were executed by guillotine, including King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette, as well as numerous political opponents and common citizens. The Terror aimed to protect the revolution from internal and external threats but ultimately resulted in widespread fear and suspicion

For Constant, the Terror is evidence of what happens when collective sovereignty is placed above individual rights. Revolutionary leaders claimed to act for the people while using coercion, executions, and repression. This is the clearest example of the dangers he warns against.

1799-1814 Napoleon is dictator

The period from 1799 to 1814 saw Napoleon Bonaparte rise to power, establishing himself as the dictator of France. He implemented significant political reforms, consolidated authority, and expanded French territories through military conquests, while also spreading revolutionary ideals across Europe. establishing a merit-based bureaucracy.

1815 napoleon 100 days

Constant served as a constitutional advisor. Constant shaped Napoleon's attempt to establish a constitutional framework amidst his return to power. He advocated for the restoration of liberties and a government based on legal principles, reflecting his commitment to individual rights and the rule of law.

1819 constant speech at the Athénée royal in paris: the liberty of the ancients compared to that of the moderns

emphasizing the importance of personal freedoms and individual rights in contemporary society. He argued that modern liberty is characterized by the protection of individual autonomy and the rule of law, differing fundamentally from the collective freedoms of ancient democracies.

This is the moment when Constant presents his solution. Looking back on Rousseau, the Revolution, the Terror, and Napoleon, he argues that modern societies need a different conception of liberty: protection of individual rights combined with representative government.

Ancient Liberty = Political Participation

in ancient republics liberty meant participating directly in government.

Citizens:

• Voted on laws.

• Decided war and peace.

• Judged public officials.

• Exercised sovereignty directly.

However, this political freedom came at a cost: individuals had very little private freedom. Religion, family life, work, and personal behavior were all regulated by the community. Sovereign in public affairs but a slave in private life

Modern Liberty = Individual Independence

freedom means:

• Freedom from arbitrary arrest.

• Freedom of speech.

• Freedom of religion.

• Freedom of association.

• Property rights.

• Freedom to choose one's occupation and way of life.

Political participation still matters, but it is no longer the essence of liberty. The essence is personal independence.

what made direct political participation possible in ancient societies

Ancient societies were:

• Small city-states.

• Constantly at war.

• Dependent on slave labor.

what made modern societies more concerned with personal freedoms

Modern societies are:

• Much larger.

• Commercial rather than military.

• Based on free labor rather than slavery.

People are occupied with work, trade, family, and personal pursuits rather than daily political activity.

how did commerce change human life

One of Constant's most important claims is that commerce replaces war.

Ancient societies gained wealth through conquest. Modern societies gain wealth through trade.

Because commerce encourages peaceful cooperation and individual initiative, modern people become more attached to personal freedom and less interested in constant political involvement.

how was athens a partial exception

Athens had more individual freedom than most ancient states because it was heavily involved in commerce.

Athenians enjoyed:

• Greater personal independence.

• More economic activity.

• More openness toward foreigners.

Yet even Athens still allowed practices like ostracism and broad public control over individuals, showing that it remained fundamentally ancient.

Critique of Rousseau and Mably

their ideas helped inspire the French Revolution's attempt to impose ancient liberty on a modern society

misunderstood liberty because they were influenced by thinkers who admired ancient republics.

He criticizes:

• Rousseau

• Abbé de Mably

Their mistake was treating collective sovereignty as if it were liberty itself and failing to recognize how modern society differs from ancient society.

they encouraged the belief that individuals should sacrifice private freedom to the collective will

critique of rousseau: gave too much power to collective sovereignty

Critique of Rousseau emphasizes that he mistakenly equated collective sovereignty with true liberty, ignoring the implications of individual rights in modern society.

Rousseau's theory emphasizes:

• Popular sovereignty.

• The general will.

• Citizens subordinating private interests to the common good.

model worked in small ancient republics but is dangerous in large modern societies. Rousseau effectively expanded the power of society over individuals beyond acceptable limits. This leads to a potential suppression of individual freedoms and personal autonomy, as modern complexities require a balance between collective governance and individual rights.

critique of rousseau: blurred the distinction between liberty and collective power

Rousseau's critique suggests he conflated individual liberty with collective power, downplaying the essential differences between personal autonomy and the will of the majority. This misunderstanding can potentially undermine individual rights within modern political structures.

For Rousseau, freedom comes from participating in making the laws.

For Constant, this is not enough.

A person may participate politically and still lack freedom if the community controls every aspect of private life. Therefore, collective sovereignty cannot by itself guarantee liberty. Modern liberty requires protected individual rights.

critique of rousseau: helped inspire revolutionary excesses

Rousseau's ideas contributed to the justification of extreme revolutionary actions, as they promoted the notion that the collective will could override individual rights, leading to potential abuses of power in the name of liberty.

Constant believes French revolutionaries used Rousseau's ideas to justify sacrificing individual freedoms in the name of the people and the general will. Although Rousseau did not intend tyranny, his theory provided intellectual support for it.

critique of mably: wanted complete subordination of the individual

malby believed citizens should be entirely subjected in order for the nation to be sovereign, and the individual should be enslaved for the people to be free

critique of mably: wanted law to control every aspect of life.

Mably regretted that law only governed actions. He wanted it to regulate:

• Thoughts,

• Feelings,

• Impressions,

• Private conduct.

Mably believed almost no area of life should escape public regulation.

critique of mably: admired repressive ancient societies

Mably admired highly regulated societies.

Mably praised these societies precisely because individuals had little independence and were completely subordinated to public authority.

the french revolutions error

The leaders of the Revolution attempted to recreate ancient republican virtue.

They believed:

• Collective power could compensate for restrictions on individual rights.

• Citizens should devote themselves entirely to public affairs.

produced coercion and tyranny because modern people do not want to sacrifice their private freedoms for continuous political involvement.

Constant argues that modern people do not accept such sacrifices. As a result, attempts to impose ancient liberty produced coercion and eventually failed.

rejection of ancient institutions

Constant rejects several ancient political practices:

• Ostracism.

• Censorship.

• Extensive state control over education.

• State control over religion.

These institutions may have functioned in small ancient republics, but they violate the rights of modern individuals

political liberty still matters

Constant does not argue that people should ignore politics.

He warns that modern citizens face a different danger from ancient citizens.

• Ancient people risked sacrificing private life for politics.

• Modern people risk becoming so absorbed in private life that they surrender political power altogether.

Governments would gladly encourage such passivity because it makes citizens easier to rule.

defense of representative government

Because modern societies are large and complex, direct democracy is impractical.

Representative government solves this problem by allowing citizens to delegate political responsibilities to elected representatives. However, citizens must continue to monitor those representatives and hold them accountable.

what must modern societies combine

1. Individual liberty (private rights and independence).

2. Political liberty (participation and oversight of government).

Political liberty remains essential because it protects individual liberty. Citizens should not abandon public life, but neither should they sacrifice their private freedoms in the name of collective power. The task of modern institutions is to preserve both

what does constant agree with rousseau

• Political authority must be based on the people rather than kings.

• Liberty is a fundamental political value.

• Citizens should participate in governing themselves.

• Arbitrary power is dangerous.

racial contract illustration

white

• full person

• full citizen

‘non-white’

• subperson

• partial- or non-citizen

  • the system treats them as if they were less than full persons

the racial contract

an implicit agreement among white individuals to establish and maintain a system of racial inequality and privilege, where non-white individuals are systematically marginalized and dehumanized.

the contract is a system of laws, customs, beliefs, institutions, and practices that collectively benefits whites.

first period of the racial contract

de jure white supremacy

the major period was the colonization of the americas

europeans developed doctrines that justified conquest, genocide, slavery, and white political domination; essentially they laid the groundwork for global white supremacy

de jure white supremacy

white supremacy established and enforced by law

• slavery laws, jim crow laws

• apartheid

• colonial legal system

• white-only immigration policies

three forms of the racial contract

• expropriation contract

• colonical contract

• slavery contract

expropriation contract

justifies the seizure of territory from nonwhite peoples by denying or minimizing ownership rights.

Doctrine of discovery: treated indigenous peoples as having only a limited right of occupancy rather than full sovereignty

colonial contract

justified european political rule over nonwhite populations

makes foreign domination appear benevolent and necessary

slavery contract

justifies treating certain people as property rather than persons

makes human ownership and force labor appear as legitimate

1492

columbus claims san salvador for spain

arrived in the carribean and claimed land for spain; indigenous people were not treated as inhabitants whose consent was required

1620

plymouth colony

settlers established their own government on indigenous territory; native people not treated as equal political partners.

1776

mission san juan capistrano founded

indigenous people were converted, disciplined, and incorporated into a colonial system. “civilizing” natives while exercising control over them.

1848

treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

ended mex-amer war

mex ceded territory to US

protections were promised to mex residents but many lost their land through legal and political manipulation.

1850

act for the government and protection of indians (california)

allowed forced indigenous labor and facilitated dispossession; native californians treated as subordinate peoples

1857

dred scott v. sanford

scotus ruled black people cannot be citizen; they had no rights which the white man was bound to respect

second period of the racial contract

formal equality + de facto white privilege

produced doctrines justifying white rule over nonwhite societies

a time when the racial contract was explicit and codified into law

formal equality

everyone is treated equally under the law and is given the same legal rights, regardless of race, gender, religion, or other characterstics

equal rules and equal legal status

de facto white privilege

the advantages that whites receive in practice, even when the law no longer explicitly grants those advantages.

racial advantages continue through institutions, customs, wealth distributions, educational opportunities, and cultural assumptions rather than through discriminatory laws

1861-1865

US civil war

the war represented a major challenge to the slavery contract

the war destroyed the legal foundation of slavery but did not destroy the racial order that slavery created

1865

13th amendment to the US constitution

formally ended the legal ownership of human beings

yet former slaves lacked political power, economic resources, and social equality

1868

14th amendment to the US constitution

a step toward formal equality

black americans are citizens and should receive legal protection

1896

plessy v ferguson

racial segregation constitutional if “seperate but equal”

black americans remained second-class citizens

1947

mendez v westminster

segregating mex-amer in cal public school is unconstitutional

rejection of the racial contract’s classification of some groups as inferior or separate.

1954

brown v board of education

overturned plessy in public education; court explicitly rejected the legal basis for racial segregation

shifting racial criteria

the definition of who counts as white has changed throughout history. race is a social and political category that shifts when it serves the interest of the racial order

comparison to locke, rousseau, kant, hobbes

• previously people naturally free, equal, deserving of rights

• mills argued these principles applied selectively

comparisson to locke

tacit consent: don’t have to sign a contract, but if you accept the benefits of a society, then you consent.

comparison to hobbes

assumes the contract applies to all equally but in practice societies did not treat everyone as equal given that nonwhites excluded from full membership

why do whites fail to see the system

the racial contract creates a way of thinking that makes racial domination difficult to recognize; beliefs are socially produced forms of ignorance that help maintain white supremacy

1790s-1840s

industrial revolution. This period marks the rise of industrial capitalism, leading to significant changes in society, including class struggles and labor rights movements.

• industrialization on a massive scale

• work is dangerous and unregulated

• widespread poverty and misery

• “the social question” which sparked debates about the impacts of capitalism.

1849

marx and engels complete the german ideology. This work critiques German philosophy and outlines their materialist conception of history.

1848

the revolutions of 1848. A series of political upheavals across Europe, advocating for democratic reforms and national independence.

Many revolutionaries demanded:

• Constitutional government

• Expanded political rights

• Economic reforms

confirmed idea that society was divided by class conflict.

• bourgeoisie sided with elites when threatened by workers

• political revolution alone insufficient without deeper ecoomic ttansformation

1859

marx and engels complete “preface to a critique of colitical economy”a foundational text addressing social theory and economics. This work elaborates on the critique of capitalism and the historical materialism framework.

economic relations form the foundation of society; law, politics, and ideas arise from that foundation; material conditions shape how people think

1864

international working men’s association founded in London to unite diverse labor movements. This organization aimed to promote workers' rights and international solidarity among labor movements.

marx became an influential leader. the proletariat could become a conscious political force capale of transforming society.

1871

the paris commune was a revolutionary government that briefly ruled Paris, advocating for socialist policies and workers' rights.

model for popular democracy. The working class could govern itself, and state institutions could not simply be taken over; they had to be transformed.

what is the german ideology

tendency to believe that ideas, consciousness, religion, and philosophy are the primary forces shaping history and society. young hegelians argue people are oppressed by false beliefs and can be liberated by changing consciousness

ideas → shape society

what is the central criticism of the german ideology

german philosophers treat ideas as if they create the social world, when in fact ideas arise from material social conditions. people are primarily shaped by their material conditions of life and production.

material life → shapes ideas

what are productive forces

• technology, tools, factories

• skills, labor power, natural resources

what are marx and engels main idea regarding productive forces

1. the level of productive development creates certain social relationships

2. those social relationships then help shape future economic development

what does marx say civil society is

the actual social and economic relationships through which people live. history is made through the social and economic life of ordinary people.

the state grows out of civil society; civil society is the source of history.

hegels political theory

1. the state

   • an institution through which common good is realized. it reconciles competing interests and makes genuine freedom possible.

2. civil society

   • the sphere where people pursue their private interests. encourages productivity, protects property rights, and creates wealth but it also gereates competition, inequality, and poverty

3. individuals

   • become truly human only through social relations. people develop consciousness, moral responsibility, and freedom through interactions with others

why does marx oppose hegel

• the state generally serves the interest of the ruling class

• civil society is the foundation of social life

what are relations of production

• different social arrangements

  • master/slave

  • lord/serf

  • capitalist/worker

economic base

the foundation of society

• productive forces

• relations of production

superstructure

• governments, laws, courts

• philosophy, education, culture, religion

and other societal institutions that arise from the economic base, reflecting the interests of the ruling class.

'epoch of social revolution’

when economic contradictions become severe; leads to class conflict/revolutions and the system starts over again at the foundation

how do people experience conflict according to marx and engels

through ideas

• political movements

• religious disputes

• philosophical debates

marx: why should technical change drive history

changes in tech and productive forces eventually transform the social relationships that organize production. productive forces come into conflict with existing relations of production.

marx: why should relations of production condition the dominant forces of consciousness?

relations of production conditions the dominant forms of consciousness because people's ideas are shaped by the social positions they occupy within a system of production. the way society organizes labor, property, and class relations influences how people understand the world.

why do some ideas appear universal?

the ruling class presents their interests as everyone’s interests

bourgeoisie

the capitalist class that owns the means of production and exploits the working class.

proletariat

the working class, the do not own significant means of productionand must sell their labor to survive.

labor contract

an agreement between an employer and employee outlining work terms and conditions.

marx criticism of labor contract

equality is misleading. worker formally free but faces practical necessity. the institutional basis of capitalist exploitation and class conflict

marx: how does a classless society lead to freedom

it eliminates the social relations that force one class to live at the expense of another. freedom is the ability of human beings to consciously control their social life and fully develop their capacities.

what are two important influences for kant

“modern” physics = causal determinism

french revolution = freedom

1797

the metaphysics of morals

the metaphysics of morals

is a foundational work by Immanuel Kant that outlines his moral philosophy, emphasizing duty and the categorical imperative as central concepts. This work establishes the principles of deontological ethics, arguing that moral actions are determined by duty rather than consequences.

what is an imperitive

an objective principle, valid reason for all, not just one

do humans automatically follow reason

no, people have desires, inclinations, emotions, and self-interest that tempt away from reason

hypothetical imperative

commands that depend on a goal you happen to have

self-interest based, conditional

doing something achieves something else

categorical imperative

command that applies regardless of goals or desires, what you ought to do

morality-based, unconditional

you do things regardless of desires; do them because they are right in itself

how would kant feel about hobbes

would reject his theory of self-interest in favor of moral duties that apply universally.

people dont need a government for security because they are evil, they need government because even if they are well-intentioned, there are still biases that would render justice insecure

what is a maxim

your own personal rule or reason for acting that guides your behavior. A maxim is essentially a principle that reflects your intentions behind your actions.

what is practical law

a rule that applies to every rational being and governs their actions based on reason, aligning with moral duties. moreso aligns with the categorical imperative

why do people have different maxims

humans are imperfectly rational; our actions are influenced by desires and self-interest, so reason doesn’t create certain maxims; theyre distorted by inclinations

what is kants categorical imperative philosophy

act in accordance with the maxim through which you can at the same time will that it become a universal law.

• if this maxim becomes universalized, can it rationally be a law if others obey

• if people cannot consistently act on this maxim without contradiction, then it immoral

a priori

something known through reason alone

a posteriori

something known through experience

what is the formula for a maxim under the categorical imperative

1. it is universal in scope

2. the will does not contradict itself

3. it does not create a “conflict of duties”

what is kants central belief

morality is governed by reason and therefore must be logically consistent

what does kant say are different forms of contract

• property

• marriage

• social contract

lockes theories of property

1. property by appropriation

   • spoilage qualification

   • (substance economy)

2. property by exchange (primative market economy)

   • ‘money’ (market economy)