Rousseau's critique of inequality : reconstructing the second discourse / Frederick Neuhouser.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Neuhouser, Frederick, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Rousseau, Jean-Jacques, 1712-1778. Discours sur l'origine et les fondements de l'inégalité parmi les hommes.

Rousseau, Jean-Jacques.

Equality.

Natural law.

Political science.

Social justice.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xi, 236 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).

Place of Publication:

Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2014.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Rousseau's Discourse on the Origin of Inequality among Mankind, published in 1755, is a vastly influential study of the foundations of human society, including the economic inequalities it tends to create. To date, however, there has been little philosophical analysis of the Discourse in the literature. In this book, Frederick Neuhouser offers a rich and incisive philosophical examination of the work. He clarifies Rousseau's arguments as to why social inequalities are so prevalent in human society and why they pose fundamental dangers to human well-being, including unhappiness, loss of freedom, immorality, conflict, and alienation. He also reconstructs Rousseau's four criteria for assessing when inequalities are or are not legitimate, and why. His reconstruction and evaluation of Rousseau's arguments are accessible to both scholars and students, and will be of interest to a broad range of readers including philosophers, political theorists, cultural historians, sociologists, and economists.

Contents:

Introduction

1. Nature is not the source of social inequality

2. Amour propre is the source of social inequality

3. The normative resources of nature

4. Judging the legitimacy of social inequalities

5. The contemporary relevance of Rousseau's critique.

Notes:

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 05 Oct 2015).

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

1-139-98639-2

1-139-99102-7

1-322-06691-4

1-316-01384-7

1-316-00260-8

1-107-58773-5

1-316-00710-3

1-316-00934-3

1-316-00484-8

OCLC:

882104710