Rousseau’s Critique of Civilization and the Social Contract
Rousseau (1712-1778)
The Enlightenment
Rousseau, a prominent Enlightenment figure, existed during a cultural movement emphasizing intellectualism and reason. This “Age of Enlightenment” aimed to address human issues and promote a more dignified and free life. As Kant described, the Enlightenment encouraged individuals to leave behind their “self-imposed immaturity,” reject restrictive guardians, and embrace happiness, progress, and rationality.
Philosophical Context
The Enlightenment in France was influenced by:
- Cartesianism: Emphasized reason over authority, tradition, or faith, and sought to explain the world mechanically.
- Bayle’s Historical and Critical Dictionary: Aimed to establish morality independent of religion and critically analyze history.
- English Empiricism: Thinkers like Bacon, Locke, and Newton contributed to this movement.
A key contribution of the French Enlightenment was the Encyclopédie, directed by D’Alembert and Diderot. It aimed to disseminate knowledge, foster critical thinking, and challenge traditional prejudices.
Prominent French Thinkers
- Voltaire (1694-1778): Introduced English empiricism to France, advocating for religious tolerance and institutional reform.
- Montesquieu (1689-1755): Championed the separation of powers within the state.
- La Mettrie (1709-1751): Proposed a materialistic view of the world and soul, suggesting humans are complex machines.
- Diderot (1713-1784): Contributed to the Encyclopédie.
The French Enlightenment shared a critical stance towards institutionalized religion, particularly Catholicism.
The Enlightenment’s most innovative contributions were in political and historical thought. Thinkers like Montesquieu and Rousseau made crucial contributions to political theory, while others viewed history as a continuous process of increasing well-being and moral development.
Critique of Civilization
A hallmark of the Enlightenment was the belief in progress. History was no longer seen as a path to salvation but as a stage for human development. Rousseau was one of the first prominent critics of this notion of progress. He argued that while the sciences and arts could improve humanity, they also contributed to corruption by creating artificial societies dominated by inequality and its associated evils: oppression of the weak, wealth disparity, and dependence.
The State of Nature
Rousseau distinguished between the state of nature and the civil state.
- Civil State: Organized society with conventional laws and government.
- State of Nature: A hypothetical pre-societal state where human life was governed by natural laws and rights. Rousseau viewed this as an abstract concept, achieved by stripping away all societal influences.
Natural Characteristics of Man
Rousseau described man in the state of nature as:
- Isolated, with family as the only natural community.
- Uncorrupted by idleness, vices, or slavery; strong, healthy, and self-sufficient.
- Fundamentally equal. He differentiated between natural/physical inequality and political/moral inequality (wealth distribution).
- Driven by two key passions: self-preservation (natural needs) and pity/compassion.
Private Property and the State
Rousseau believed humans realized the advantages of uniting to protect their interests. Living together fostered bonds and passions like marital and paternal love, and friendship. However, private property emerged, leading to forced labor, rivalry, and conflicting interests. To escape this state of war, humans created states and laws. Rousseau argued that the state only reinforced inequality and injustice, with laws becoming new chains restricting human freedom.
The Reform of the Political Community: The Social Contract
Rousseau did not advocate returning to the state of nature, deeming it both impossible and undesirable. Instead, he proposed reforming existing societies to preserve the freedom and equality enjoyed by natural man. His solution was the social contract, an agreement where each individual submits entirely to the general will, provided everyone else does the same.
The General Will
The general will arises from the union of all individuals, establishing laws applicable to everyone. Particular interests vanish, replaced by the common good. The law may decree privileges but cannot specify who receives them.
The State and the Sovereign
Through the social contract, individuals agree to be bound by the general will, establishing a republic or political body. When legislating, this body is the sovereign, and its members are citizens. When passive, it is the state, and its members are subjects. Sovereignty is inalienable and indivisible. If people delegate decision-making to representatives, they lose their freedom, breaking the social contract. Because sovereignty is general, it is also indivisible. Rousseau, unlike Locke and Montesquieu, rejected the separation of powers. Legislative power is sovereign, while executive power resides in the government.
The Government
The government’s function is purely administrative, serving the sovereign. It does not create laws but clarifies and enforces them.
Types of Government
- Democracy: Magistrates appointed by the sovereign citizens or their majority.
- Aristocracy: Magistrates fewer than the number of citizens. Can be natural (based on qualities like age or experience), elective, or hereditary.
- Monarchy: Sovereign power concentrated in one citizen magistrate.
Rousseau argued that democracy suits small states, aristocracy medium states, and monarchy large states.
Advantages of the Civil State
Humans lose their natural freedom, including possession of whatever they desire and can attain. In return, they gain civil liberty, moral equality, and the right to property.
- Natural Liberty: Freedom of the individual in the state of nature.
- Civil Liberty: Freedom of the individual as a member of the civil state.
- Moral Freedom: Individuals restrain natural impulses and submit to the general will.
- Natural Equality: Absence of rank or economic power, as in the state of nature.