The Social Contract (Paperback)

Derek Matravers

ISBN 10: 1853267813 / ISBN 13: 9781853267819

Published by Wordsworth Editions Ltd, Herts, 1998

About this Item

Paperback. In 'The Social Contract' Rousseau (1712-1778) argues for the preservation of individual freedom in political society. An individual can only be free under the law, he says, by voluntarily embracing that law as his own. Hence, being free in society requires each of us to subjugate our desires to the interests of all, the general will. Some have seen in this the promise of a free and equal relationship between society and the individual, while others have seen it as nothing less than a blueprint for totalitarianism. 'The Social Contract' is not only one of the great defences of civil society, it is also unflinching in its study of the darker side of political systems. With an Introduction by Derek Matravers. AUTHOR: Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712 - 1778) was, arguably, the most original, profound, and creative writer of the eighteenth century, but also the most controversial, and his work continues to divide opinion to this day. His 'Confessions' recreates the world in which he progressed from incompetent engraver to grand success; his enthusiasm for experience, his love of nature, and his uncompromising character make him an ideal guide to eighteenth-century Europe, and he was the author of some of the most profound work ever written on the relationship between the individual and the state. In this translated classic, Rousseau argues for the preservation of individual freedom in political society. He says that we can only be free under the law by voluntarily embracing that law as our own. Hence, being free in society requires each of us to subjugate all our desires to the collective good, the general will. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9781853267819

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Social Contract (Paperback)
• Publisher: Wordsworth Editions Ltd, Herts
• Publication Date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1853267813
• ISBN 13: 9781853267819
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

In The Social Contract Rousseau (1712-1778) argues for the preservation of individual freedom in political society. An individual can only be free under the law, he says, by voluntarily embracing that law as his own. Hence, being free in society requires each of us to subjugate our desires to the interests of all, the general will. Some have seen in this the promise of a free and equal relationship between society and the individual, while others have seen it as nothing less than a blueprint for totalitarianism. The Social Contract is not only one of the great defences of civil society, it is also unflinching in its study of the darker side of political systems.

About the Author

Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revolution and the development of modern political, economic and educational thought. His Discourse on Inequality and The Social Contract are cornerstones in modern political and social thought. Rousseau's sentimental novel Julie, or the New Heloise (1761) was important to the development of preromanticism and romanticism in fiction. His Emile, or On Education (1762) is an educational treatise on the place of the individual in society. Rousseau's autobiographical writings the posthumously published Confessions (composed in 1769), which initiated the modern autobiography, and the unfinished Reveries of the Solitary Walker (composed 1776 1778) exemplified the late-18th-century "Age of Sensibility", and featured an increased focus on subjectivity and introspection that later characterized modern writing. Rousseau befriended fellow philosophy writer Denis Diderot in 1742, and would later write about Diderot's romantic troubles in his Confessions. During the period of the French Revolution, Rousseau was the most popular of the philosophers among members of the Jacobin Club. He was interred as a national hero in the Panthéon in Paris, in 1794, 16 years after his death.