Synopsis
“I conceive two species of inequality among men; one which I call natural … because it is established by nature […] the other which may be termed moral, or political inequality.”
Discourse on Inequality, commonly known as the “Second Discourse”, is a treatise by Swiss-born philosopher and writer Jean-Jacques Rousseau, first published in 1755. This edition features an anonymous English translation from the French original, published in 1910 by editor Charles W. Eliot.
In this work, Rousseau sets out his theories on how civilization and its expansion corrupts man’s natural state of contentment and freedom, via the creation of artificial inequalities of wealth, power and resources. A revolutionary work on its first publication, it is a work which cotinues to powerfully resonate in our modern age.
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About the Author
Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712–1778) is the author of numerous political and philosophical texts as well as entries on music for Diderot's Encyclopédie and the novels La nouvelle Héloïse and Émile.
Language Notes
Text: English, French (translation)
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