Lecture 8 Rousseau Flashcards
Rousseau 1712-1778
intellectual celebrity of his day
- said to have inspired the french revo
critic of the enlightnement, looks forward to romanticsim and traditon
- diagnoses and anticipates social theory. interested in the concept of progress. bad behavior atributed to social causes (not unlike mencius) - rejects original sin. on the side of natural good and human soul is corrupted not orignally bad - his own thought is not so superficial
Life story of Rousseau
- geneva born (switzerland)
- calvanist republic
- Grand council of geneva established in 1457 and has members elected regularly with short terms
- son of a widoved watchmaker ( had to leave geneva at 10 years old)
- Became known as a composer / musician
- Met Diderot and had his vision
- Rputinely persecuted bc of his views
- had damous quarrel with david Hume
- Had 5 illegitmate children with Threse Levasseur
- all put up for adoption ( reason for a death sentence)
- Died (pretty much) insane
Aim of Social Contract
Rosseeau alerts his reader that he is part of a wider intellectual traidition. combines morality and self interest.
“what can meke chains legitamte?”
- assume imperfect human nature
- machiavelli, spinoza
- inquire what laws (or political order) would be legitmate… discussion of who is not the rightful but from the perspective fo the citizens. you may obey out of interest but there is no obligationto obey in the first place.
- poterntiallty radical claim because then what is rightful / legitmte state or authority.
Aim of Social Contract (2)
- tries to combine morality and self interest
legitmate state will only function if tis attentive to our own and its own interest.
that is how rouasseu threads the needle for what is state legitamcy
Hobessian conception of freedom
liberty is the ability and freedom to do what yyou want without constraints. freedom is lack of constraints on satisfaction. so you are more free the fewer constraints you have and the more wants you can satisfy.
In Leviathan the view is subjective: “hope in the attaining of our ends”
- prefigures “Homo Economicus”
- There is an obvious problem with this view. Rousseu mentions it while discussing Aristotle
Hobessian Concept of Freedom (2)
Rousseaus is a critical of this view:
- he says aristotle has a view for natural slavery. he is right (surprising since roussoue is an egalitarian). he took the effect for the cause though therefore aristole is right. rousseau is engaged to victim blaming here although his time had mass slavery going on.
- ignore empirical claim that salves lack desire to escape (victim blaming)
- if the environment is not right —> satisfying our wants is not a sign of our freedom but our , un-freedom
- on his view the natural slave is satisfied. (stockholm syndrome)
Hobessian Concept of Freedom (3)
- sour grapes: adopt a negative/ critical attitude to something because you cannot obtain it.
- Rousseau (with Hobbes) denies natural inequality.
- rouassue disasgrees with aristotle on natural slavery
- In socitiies inequalities are bred / developed. we are naturally equal but society makes us unequal
A rationalist critcism and alternative (spinoza)
- our sense of freedom rests on an illusion and ignorance. we confuse cause and effect
- For spinoza to be free is to act from reason that is —> adequate knowledge
- only if you know what you are doing are you really in self-control. The source / ground of action matters. To be free turns on the right reason / motive (the will is irrelevant).
- if u understand what you know and know what you are doing is to be free
- For spinoza this is compatible with the idea that the universe is law governed and fully deterministic. Language is metaphysical but the position becomes totally mainstream basically
Rousseau on Freedom and Autonomy
- 1- if we act from impulse we are a slave to our desires. only we are obdeient to the law we prescribe ourselves that we are free.
- rejects Hobbesian / Homo economicus conception of freedom
- slave to one’s desire
- rejects Hobbesian / Homo economicus conception of freedom
- 2 - Following / obeying the (right sort of) law = freedom
Autonomy= giving law to one’s self - Law is legitmate law if and onyl if it has a proper ground
- What is the proper ground: the individual self
- When does law have this quality? ( A: Social Contract)
Modern Republicanism
political liberty understood as non-domination or independece from arbitary power
Non domination pushes towards equality among those who are free
Rousseau’s republicanism
political liberty uderstood as governed by impartial laws.
- not to be confussed with republiciansim as anti monarchism
On Freedom (Rouasseau)
- Our natural condition is freedom (state of nature)
- In (nearly all polities) we are not free (but we often decieve ourselves otherwise)
- Even slave owner or tyrant is not really free (even if s/he thinks otherwise)
- Responding to force is merely an act of prıdence
- prudence is self interest but not moral
- Problem: it assumes a conception of morality in which self-care is oppostie of morality
- One may think that morality also enouragfes not to debase ourselves, to make sure we are capable of helping others, etc. (adam smith)
How can we be free in society?
at this stage rouasseu has dug himself into a hole. bc if responding to an acting of self intrest is at odds with freedom then we cant be free anyways (pretty much never).
- being in society as autonomous beigns and still being protected against the violence of others and stay as free as before is the problem with the social contract.
How can we be free in a society (2)
- aim of a social contract is to preserve freedoms and property. state of nature is fine.
- but thinks most societies undermine freedom - Disagrees with Hobees and Locke: even after social contract the individual can only obey himself (without becoming a slave)
- But how can one obey the sovereign and onself simultaneosly?
- A: If one always remains part of the sovereign
- How is that possible (rousseaus answer): General Will!
- A: If one always remains part of the sovereign
How can we be free in a society (3)
- Social contract establishes a sovereign or sovereigns who is/ are other than the multitude that generates it.
- For Rousseau, NO TRANSFER OF SOVEREIGNTY TO OTHERS
General Will
- The social contract is done by the people as a corporate and indivisible body
- Coroporate in the emdieval sense is a legal body (including universities)
- A corporate / instituion can change location, name etc. but can still preserve its identity
- The people always remain sovereign
- Not so in Hobbes though ( sovereginty is created and gifted to one person)
General Will (2)
- The people is composed of individuals who are persons (moral agents)
- The people generate a will which is legit authortiy (to be obeyed)
- The legitamte will just is our collective power
- The general will can use force: he (who disobeys) will be forced to be free
- The people generate a will which is legit authortiy (to be obeyed)
