Essays on Rousseau

Judging this conflict using the philosophical article of Rousseau ‘discourse on origin of inequality’

Rousseau’s philosophical article discourse on the origin of inequality was an attempt to analyze the source of evil and inequality that have been boggling man since his existence in this world. Rousseau in his article wrote that the very evil that faces humanity has originated from selfish behavior of the natural man. To him the man who first installed boundaries on his perceived property became the source of all evil in the world today. In this article Rousseau, wrote that life was initially good when people just had enough to make them survive and enough personal space. The Continue reading...

- For Locke:John Locke, Second Treatise on Government, 1689
In the “second treatise of government”, Locke advocates that governments are formed through mutual agreement. He is of the view that those who are given the mandate to govern must do so without violating the fundamental rights and freedoms of the people. He opines that people acquire the rights to property, life, and liberty upon birth. Locke’s contention is that governments are supposed to protect the foregoing rights for the benefit of the citizens. Accordingly, he observes that the power to make laws is a preserve of the people.
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Explain why the move from amour de soi to amour propre is crucial Rousseau's claim that civilization has done more damage than good for the development of human mankind.
The personality that featured himself as a continued importance to us is Jean-Jacques Rousseau. He has the importance because of the situations that are present in today’s world. In spite of him being left us a quarter millennium ago. He is the one who has an insight view of the living. That is living a better life in the competitive, status conscious and hierarchical societies. He has also provided Continue reading...

The state of nature is an idea arising from moral and political concepts that try to explain the right and wrong things about human life (Moehler 300). It also elaborates on the perception of human beings and power influence to human life. The states of nature try to explain the human life before civilization with an assumption of what the case would be in case civilization did not exist in the present life (Stănilă 62). However, through the disclosure on inequality, Rousseau presents a different view tracing man way back to the original being. As much as Hobbes Continue reading...

In a world where most people will only be interested in those things that satisfy their selfish whims, it is unlikely that one would passionate about the general happiness of others in the society. The concept of happiness is an emotional state of wellness that is manifest by the exuberance of pleasant emotions that emanates from a feeling of contentment and joy. However, this definition at best does not capture all the multi-facets of happiness as it may be construed by different persons. Disparities in meaning and construction have been raised by commentators who confine happiness to the hedonistic Continue reading...

Introduction

Cultural beliefs illustrate theories, facts, norms, values, or principles that individuals need to uphold while in the society. The society has a perception on various issues that surround an individual’s life. As such, the individual needs to adopt the perceptions and uphold them while in a given social setting. The following discussion gives an analysis of women, gender, and sex in the rise of western civilization. The discussion makes use of great philosophers and historians who provided different arguments about the topic in order to prove certain points. A comparison and contrast between the works of Jean Jacques Continue reading...

Equality is one of the most prevalent themes among the theories developed by intellectuals in society. Even though different theories present various types of discourses regarding the varying degrees of fairness and equality, the political thought during the time of Rousseau and John Locke critically analyzed the concept of equality and inequality in society and emphasized the importance of the individual in thinking. They considered the disposition of humans through the lens of individualism rather than examining the group as a whole. The result was these intellectuals were able to spot a certain extent of secularization in the contemporary Continue reading...

Best friend: (After hitting down and killing an old woman due to careless driving). You must promise not tell anyone about this incident.
Kant: A hit and run dilemma must involve an unlawful driving practice where the person liable for perpetrating or partaking in the accident declines to stop and assume accountability as required by the law. As opposed to adhering to the recommended procedure after such a misfortune or acting as recourse for any affected victim.
Hume: In your scenario, a hit and run incident arises since your colleague was accountable for the accident but decided to abscond Continue reading...

Social Contracts as proposed by Locke, Hobbes, and Rousseau

Numerous psychologists have contributed immensely to the field of psychology and human behavior and a few famous such psychologists are Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Rousseau, among other who have contributed largely to the field of psychology. All the above mentioned psychologists are exemplary thinkers as each one of them has grappled to an exceptional extent in discussing the problem of origin. Considering Locke, this encompasses the origin of the psychic body of the individual; and while with Hobbes, it encompasses the origin of the social organization of the humankind.
The theory of Social Contracts as proposed by Thomas Hobbes Continue reading...

Philosophy

In Rousseau’s political thoughts, general will is at the heart of the social contract. General will is the most fundamental principle in Rousseau’s social contract. Social contract gets its legitimacy through only the application of general will. But what this “general will” actually is? To Rousseau general will is not simply the sum total of all individual wills, rather it is the collective will of the people of a community. The general will is something additional to the simply the will of all the individuals. In Rousseau’s view general will is the only source of law Continue reading...

The enlightenment thinkers espoused the use of logic and reason over tradition, religion, culture and logic. The aim of enlightenment thinkers was to give a logical foundation to a philosophy. Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a prominent intellectual figure during the age of enlightenment. He is mostly recognized as a political theorist and philosopher. Rousseau’s first philosophical work won him a prize from the Academy of Dijon. This work was a critique on the fundamental propositions of the enlightenment. He questioned the nature of human inequality, whether it was “natural”. Rousseau argued that the advancement of science and art led Continue reading...

Summary of “An Overview of Theories”

Summary of “An Overview of Theories”

- Important social events such as revolutions led to the formalization of sociology as science.

Rise of Capitalism

- The system of people in relation to land was change from feudalism to capitalism.
- When feudal system dominated Europe, a huge part of the land was owned by the nobility but Serfs also owned small parcel of land that helped them sustain their food needs.
- Since crops became popular and expensive, the Lords broke the Serfs’ rights to live on land and raise their animals there making them work to earn money to buy their Continue reading...

Term Paper: Jean Jacques Rousseau vs. John Locke

Economic inequality is a menace that has been witnessed in the developing and the developed nations since ancient times. Legislation regarding the ownership of property has drawn heated criticism from various scholars and human rights activists. John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau are among the activists who have expressed strong ideas concerning the issue of ownership of private property. John in the Second Treaties of Government takes a soft stance. He defends the natural right of acquiring private property despite the economic inequalities that the move bears to the people of the nation. John’s stance on the matter has Continue reading...

Lysander Spooner was an American philosopher and anarchist who was an ardent supporter of labor movements in his hey days during 19th century. Born in state of Massachusetts in the early years of the 19th century, Spooner a lawyer was against the set legislation that have been instituted by man in a bid to harmonize the daily life of citizens. Spooner questions the authority of the constitution to bid all the citizens both the presently alive and the future generation to obediently follow its doctrines and practices. According to Spooner, there is no way the future generation should be Continue reading...

According to Thomas Hobbes, man existed several centuries ago even before the social contract came to pass. There was a chaotic kind of life where there was no administration and government in place. Hobbes lived during a period of intense war in England between 1642 and 1648. During that period, there were two factions involved in the war. On one, hand, there were the kings together with their supporters who were demanding a monarch kind of governance. On the other hand, there were the parliamentarians under the leadership of Olivier Cromwell. The parliamentarians’ demanded absolute power of the parliament. Continue reading...

The relationship between nature, the state and individuals is a complex one; political philosophers have been studying these relationships ever since the dawn of time, with the goal being to determine the best way in which the people relate to nature. Based on the ideas of philosopher John Locke, the state does not have the ability to infringe upon the right of people to determine their own destiny; he believes that mankind’s best state is to bring the best parts of their natural instincts into society, collecting together into a “state of perfect freedom.” Conversely, philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau Continue reading...

The most common definition of the term Democracy is the one inferred from its roots in the Greek language, where Demos means people, and Kratos means power. However, establishing that the term Democracy means the power of the people has no practical use if there is no convention on how to give that power to the people, or how people can exert that power, or even the scope of such power and who is considered to be called people. Historically, there have been two conceptions of democracy, each with its own definitions.
There is a marked difference between how Continue reading...

Rousseau and Wollstonecraft conquered the world with their philosophical words and arguments back in the years. Rousseau is one of the most influential thinkers who were re-known in Europe for some of his major arguments. He did philosophical works such as A Disclosure on the Sciences and Arts back in the 1750’s. Rousseau discusses education at a very high level where he argued against traditional views of religion that led to much criticism (Spielvogel). This paper will analyze the views of these two great philosophers by comparing and contrasting their views on some of the issues such women Continue reading...

A concept can be thought of as a lens that can be used to see a phenomenon or explain it. If the contents of the concept varies, the lenses are changed, and the same phenomenon might appear different to the observer as well. The concept of Nature sometimes is used without being defined but, according to some philosophers, it encloses at least three different meanings , and each can be considered a different glass through which the world can be observed and even defined. Some authors see nature as an inherent quality of all objects, as something that generates them Continue reading...

The Republicans and the Democrats have distinctively different philosophies on a wide range of issues. The Republicans tend to be more conservative on virtually all subjects as opposed to the Democrats who take liberal positions. As such, a conservative Republican position denotes one that is conservative in its approach. On the other hand, the liberal democratic position leans to the left and is not conservative. In order to shed some light on these diametric positions, this paper shall conduct an overview of the various philosophies that inform the two schools of thought. Next, this paper shall apply the models Continue reading...

The American Forefathers were greatly influenced by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, a stalwart of Enlightenment. His social contract theory had enormous impact on the role of the government in the American society. His political beliefs form the basis of the omnipotent American Constitution. Also, quite a number of eminent figures of the history of America have been influenced by Rousseau’s philosophy.
Rousseau believed that the paramount authority lies with the common people and thus championed democracy. He states in The Social Contract that man comes in this world free. Also, controls which are governed by a freely formed governmental institution Continue reading...

Jean-Jacques Rousseau has remained to be one of the most significant people in history, as well as the present philosophy. He made many contributions to many areas, which include moral psychology and the area of political philosophy. Jean-Jacques Rousseau was the son one ordinary watchmaker Isaac Rousseau and Suzanne Bernard. He was born 1712, in the city state of Calvinist in Geneva; Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s father was one among the few minorities of the people from Geneva who were given the chance to enjoy the ranking of Geneva citizens. This was a vital status that was passed on from Continue reading...

DID ROUSSEAU REMAIN TRUE TO THE ENLIGHTENMENT MOVEMENT’S VALUES?

Rousseau was an influential member of the Enlightenment Movement and for many years had a close, productive relationship with other members. For example, he wrote almost all the entries on music in Encyclopaedia of Diderot. In fact Rousseau wrote at one time that Diderot was his closest friend and they spent time together almost every day.1 About 1750, unfortunately, a difficult break was made between the others in the movement and Rousseau. He was accused of disagreeing with the basic philosophical tenets of the movement and in effect muddying Continue reading...

In his “Discourse on Inequality” Rousseau addresses the psychological and political effects of property ownership on human nature and society. He criticizes the inequity of modern institutions and traces their origins back showing how the evolution of humankind established the relationship between property, society and inequality. Originally written in 1754 as an entry for a competition run by the Dijon Academy of Arts and Sciences it established him as an important philosopher. The original question was “What is the origin of inequality among men, and is it authorized by the natural law?” Although his first discourse won the competition Continue reading...

Rousseau’s writings include contradictions which still make his work much discussed. He was born three hundred years ago on June 28, 1712 in Geneva. In his lifetime his writings caused him to be thrown out of cities and he needed to move to different parts of Europe, spending some time in exile in England. After writing the book Émile he made both Protestant and Catholic leaders angry enough to ban him even when trying to support the church. And his friend Mary Wollstonecraft was very angry with him for how he portrayed women in the book. Maybe Rousseau Continue reading...

With the development of educational thought, it is necessary, albeit very briefly, understand its current position. In Christianity, there are always two things: 1) Christianity is the doctrine of this life, and 2) Christianity is the doctrine of eternal life. The most important problem of Christianity - the problem of salvation - appears in this life, and in addition, Christianity represents a revelation given over not to somehow get through this life, but with love to carry your life cross. This explains the fact that Christianity has given an unprecedented flowering of human cultural forces in all areas: art, Continue reading...

Psychological contract’: An Introduction

In 1960 Argyris gave the concept of the ‘psychological contract’. However, this concept got remarkable popularity amongst various researchers relating to organizational management. During the 1990’s the global economy witnessed an economic recession that caused major restructuring, mergers and acquisition in various organizations. Such changes also led to a new approach towards the organizations, employers and the workers. The concept of the psychological contract assisted in explaining these changes and, the renewed focus amongst employees and employers (Van den Brande, 1999).

The early definitions of psychological contract created expectations from the both the individual and the organizations. In Continue reading...

 Education Reform

Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Inequality is an inevitable truth of our society. We see inequality everywhere, whether it’s between rich or poor, powerful or suppressed, strong or weak. What bothers Rousseau is that how and why such inequalities evolved in our society. The very first question that strikes of ‘Jean Jacques Rousseau’ is his question about inequality in two terms those are natural and political. He asks in the very first part of his work of ‘dedication’ that, he states that how equality is natural, and inequality is man-made, something that is introduced by men. Further talking about equality, he Continue reading...

A Vindication of the Rights of Women

Mary Wollstonecraft lived a short and a courageous life. She was born in 1759 and died giving birth to her second child in 1797. She was only 38 years old. She is still famous today and remembered with respect as an early feminist; one of the women who set the foundation that feminism was built on.
Her major work is titled A Vindication of the Rights of Women. The book was published in 1792; Schneir (1972) tells us that from 1792 to 1892 the book was published for four editions and in England for six editions. She had written Continue reading...

Arguably, Mary Wollstonecraft can be said to be the “Mother of feminism” or rather “the first feminist”. As a matter of fact, most of her work focuses on the education as well as the rights of women. For instance, a Vindication of the rights of Women is a good example on how she focuses the status of women in the society and it displays pure thoughts of feminism. Undoubtedly, most people interpret her work as well as life in different ways depending on the perception of the writer as far as the equality of women is concerned. On the Continue reading...

8th May, 2011

According to Jean Jacques Rousseau, two different kinds of inequality exist in a human society. There is natural and moral inequality. Natural inequality as the name suggest is as a result of nature. Here, things like differences in mind quality, age, bodily strength and health are at play to cause inequality. However, Rousseau believes that moral inequality also known as political inequality is instigated by men themselves. This may include privileges enjoyed by some people at the expense of the rest. For example, being wealthier, more powerful or even influential.
Rousseau however was never concerned with Continue reading...

In the book Emile, Rousseau borrowed a lot of thinkers that came before him. He had the arguments of John Locke on teaching and education. Still, he quite remarkably combined the arguments of the preceding philosophers to form a coherent and comprehensive teaching system. Using the medium of the novel, Rousseau was able to dramatize such that they reached a wide audience. Rousseau saw the system of education as married to nature that had characteristics of harmony, and concern for the learner as well as the learning process itself. The premise of this argument was the preservation of the Continue reading...

The French Revolution is typically the main historical dividing line between the ancient European regimes and the modern world. It marked the transition from the traditional social order to a democratic system. Nevertheless, the transition process was long and violent which eventually led to Napoleon Bonaparte rising to power in 1799 through a military coup d’état. Even though much of its impact was confined to France, it spread to other parts of Europe and the rest of the world. It marked the beginning of the revolutionary wars in the world over. The French Revolution marked the first occasion Continue reading...

The concept of ''liberalism'' emerged in the early 19th century in European political literature. For the first time this term was used in Cadiz Constitution in Spain in 1811, when a group of politicians defined the constitution drawn up by them as liberal. Later this concept was included in the English, French, and then in all the European languages. The term ''liberalism’' comes from the Latin ''liberalis'' which means freedom (Merriam-Webster Dictionary). Today, liberalism is a complex system that characterizes the economic and political relations in the country. Initially, liberalism was a purely political notion; economic sphere, although Continue reading...

Political legitimacy

Introduction
Political legitimacy is an example of a virtue relating to political institutions regarding the governing laws, policies and the candidates that aspire to hold political positions. In a narrow perspective, political legitimacy can be defined as the universal recognition of the governing law or regime and considering as authority. In this context, authority represents a political position that has been founded on an existing government. Legitimacy on the other hand signifies a system of government, which represents the sphere of influence. During the era of enlightenment, the aspect of political legitimacy is perceived as a fundamental pre-requisite for Continue reading...

Introduction

Manderville argues that “private vices” (or self-interest) leads to “publick benefits” (such as social structures like language, law and markets). This is because thinkers like Manderville posit that the best approach for running a society is to create and maintain a Capitalist structure where all members commercialize their effort and make the best of it in terms of profiting from their activities. This paper posits that the benefit of such a commercial society is that it enables people to turn their selfish and unsociable passion into good and positive things. The paper will evaluate this thesis in the light Continue reading...

Abstract

Democratic Kampuchea was one of the most violent regimes to ever rule. During the course of their rule, they were responsible for the death of more than two million individuals; as a proportion of the nation’s size, this is an incredibly large number. The deaths were the result of a nearly fundamentalist adherence to the philosophies espoused in The Communist Manifesto, and were incredibly damaging to the nation in both the long term and the short term.
The years following the second world war were a tumultuous time for the world as a whole. The world knew that Continue reading...

STATEMENT TO BE SIGNED BY EACH STUDENT

1. I have read the section on plagiarism that appears on the reverse side of this sheet.
2. In my assignment I have carefully acknowledged the source of any material which is not my own work.
3. I am aware that the penalties for plagiarism can be very severe, including withdrawal of permission to enrol in the University.

REVIEW ESSAY QUESTION (20% of Unit Marks, 1,500 word limit)

Using the two papers by Rousseau and Sylla, what lessons can be drawn by emerging markets economies from the experiences of the countries covered? In your answer, include issues relating to the creation of a viable financial system (and the different ‘ Continue reading...

Other

In his essay, ‘Discourse on the Origin of Inequality,’ Rousseau considers how man seeks freedom in the discourse and the social contract. However, the realization of liberty is hindered by supremacy of inequality and property, characteristic of capitalism as expressed by Karl Marx in the Communist Manifesto. The freedom expressed by Rousseau is not entirely political but also freedom from the need and psychological. In the novel, Their Eyes were Watching God, by Zara, the character Janie is in the journey to achieve freedom from male domination, true love and self-independence in a world of racism and female subordination. Continue reading...

The novel “Lord of the flies” depicts humans in their most evil form and how humans are controlled by societal norms but can change at the slightest opportunity to brutal creatures. For the purposes of this paper, the character of Jack the choir leader will be analyzed. Jack is depicted as the most brutal character. He plots all of the evil schemes and destroys the law and order society that had been established by Ralph.
As established in Rousseau philosophy, man is free in a state of nature. He is also in oblivion and unaware of his surroundings and Continue reading...