Rousseau's Political Philosophy: The Social Contract

Rousseau: The Social Contract

Biographical Information

  • Born in Geneva, June 28, 1712.
  • Influenced by Plutarch's "Lives."
  • Early life involved travels and relationships, including with Françoise Louise de Warens.
  • Had 5 children with Therèse Lavasseur, all sent to an orphanage.
  • Authored significant works: "First Discourse" (1750), "Second Discourse" (1754), "Third Discourse" (1755), "The Social Contract" (1762), and "Émile".
  • Exiled and moved to Scotland with David Hume, later pardoned but restricted from publishing.
  • Died in Paris, July 2, 1778.

Key Concepts

  • Legitimacy and Reliability: Foundation of civil order rests on understanding people and laws.
  • Citizenship: Active participation vs. passive acceptance (subject).
  • Nature and Convention: Balancing natural justice with conventional justice.

Three Political Moments

  • State of Nature: Humans as animals, integrated mind and body.
  • Unjust Regime: Established by custom, unhealthy.
  • Healthy Regime: Convention perfects nature.
  • Rousseau seeks a balance between natural and conventional elements.

State of Nature

  • Humans are well-adapted animals.
  • Rationality leads to alienation from nature and self-consciousness.
  • Development of reason causes alienation.
  • Rational actions lead to thinking of others as distinct, causing envy, pride, and competition.

Self-Love

  • Amour de soi: Healthy self-esteem (natural).
  • Amour propre: Desire for others' admiration (rational).
  • The goal is to return to amour de soi from amour propre.
  • Without amour de soi, there is the temptation for war or authoritarianism.

Political Convention

  • Progression: Nature → Reason/Alienation → Dialectical Integration.
  • Nature: Unselfconscious, governed by instinct.
  • 1st Convention: Reason, self-consciousness, unjust and unhealthy, governed by desire and domination.
  • 2nd Convention: Refounding convention in accord with nature.

Political Life

  • Mostly voluntary and by convention.
  • Family as the first natural social arrangement; reciprocal care.

Rejection of Strength and Mastery

  • Might does not equal right.
  • No duty to obey force.
  • Slavery is a contradiction.

Slavery

  • Slavery by nature is not justified; reason moves us out of nature.
  • Slavery by convention is also never justified.
  • War cannot justify slavery.
  • People cannot choose to be slaves; they may not know what they truly want.