Rousseau's Social Contract: An Introduction

327 Pages·2014·3.244 MB·English

by  David Lay Williams

Cambridge University Press
978-0-521-19755-7 - Rousseau's Social Contract: An Introduction
David Lay Williams
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ROUSSEAU’S SOCIAL CONTRACT
An Introduction
I f the greatness of a philosophical work can be measured by the vol-
ume and vehemence of the public response, there is little question
that Rousseau’s Social Contract stands out as a masterpiece. Within a
week of its publication in 1762 it was banned in France. Soon there-
after, Rousseau fl ed to Geneva, where he saw the book burned in
public. At the same time, many of his contemporaries, such as Kant,
considered Rousseau to be “the Newton of the moral world,” as he was
the fi rst philosopher to draw attention to the basic dignity of human
nature. Th e S ocial Contract has never ceased to be read and debated
in the 250 years since its publication. Rousseau’s Social Contract: An
Introduction off ers a thorough and systematic tour of this notoriously
paradoxical and challenging text. David Lay Williams off ers a chap-
ter-by-chapter reading of the S ocial Contract , squarely confronting its
interpretive obstacles, leaving no stones unturned. Th e conclusion
connects Rousseau’s text to both his important infl uences and those
who took inspiration and sometimes exception to his arguments. Th e
book also features a special extended appendix dedicated to outlining
his general will, which has been the object of controversy since the
Social Contract ’s publication.
d avid lay williams is Associate Professor of Political Science at
DePaul University and the author of R ousseau’s Platonic Enlightenment
(2007) and Th e General Will: Th e Evolution of a Concept (forthcom-
ing from Cambridge University Press), as well as numerous articles in
journals such as H istory of Political Th ought , J ournal of the History of
Ideas , Th e Journal of Politics, the American Journal of Political Science ,
and Polity. He has twice held fellowships at the Institute for Research
in the Humanities at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, as well
as a fellowship at the DePaul Humanities Center. He was formerly
Professor of Philosophy and Political Science at the University of
Wisconsin–Stevens Point.
© in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org
Cambridge University Press
978-0-521-19755-7 - Rousseau's Social Contract: An Introduction
David Lay Williams
Frontmatter
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© in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org
Cambridge University Press
978-0-521-19755-7 - Rousseau's Social Contract: An Introduction
David Lay Williams
Frontmatter
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cambridge introductions to key
philosophical texts
Th is new series off ers introductory textbooks on what are considered to be the most
important texts of Western philosophy. Each book guides the reader through the
main themes and arguments of the work in question, while also paying attention
to its historical context and its philosophical legacy. No philosophical background
knowledge is assumed, and the books will be well suited to introductory-level
university courses.
Titles published in the series:
ARISTOTLE’S N ICOMACHEAN ETHICS by Michael Pakaluk
D ESCARTES’S M EDITATIONS by Catherine Wilson
H EGEL’S P HENOMENOLOGY OF SPIRIT by Larry Krasnoff
H EIDEGGER’S B EING AND TIME by Paul Gorner
H UME’S A TREATISE OF HUMAN NATURE by John P. Wright
KANT’S C RITIQUE OF PURE REASON by Jill Vance Buroker
KANT’S G ROUNDWORK OF THE METAPHYSICS OF MORALS by
Sally Sedgwick
NIETZSCHE’S O N THE GENEALOGY OF MORALITY by Laurence
J. Hatab
R AWLS’S A THEORY OF JUSTICE by John Mandle
S PINOZA’S E THICS by Steven Nadler
W ITTGENSTEIN’S P HILOSOPHICAL INVESTIGATIONS by
David G. Stern
W ITTGENSTEIN’S T RACTATUS by Alfred Nordmann
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978-0-521-19755-7 - Rousseau's Social Contract: An Introduction
David Lay Williams
Frontmatter
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© in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org
Cambridge University Press
978-0-521-19755-7 - Rousseau's Social Contract: An Introduction
David Lay Williams
Frontmatter
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ROUSSEAU’S SOCIAL

CONTRACT
An Introduction
DAVID LAY WILLIAMS
DePaul University

© in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org
Cambridge University Press
978-0-521-19755-7 - Rousseau's Social Contract: An Introduction
David Lay Williams
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© David Lay Williams 2014
Th is publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception
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permission of Cambridge University Press.
First published 2014
Printed in the United States of America
A catalog record for this publication is available from the British Library.
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication data
Williams, David Lay, 1969–
Rousseau’s social contract : an introduction / David Lay Williams, DePaul University.
pages cm. (Cambridge introductions to key philosophical texts)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn 978-0-521-19755-7 Hardback
isbn 978-0-521-12444-7 Paperback
1. Rousseau, Jean-Jacques, 1712–1778. Du contrat social. I. Title.
jc179.r88w55 2014
320.1′1–dc23 CIP 2013008027
isbn 978-0-521-19755-7 Hardback
isbn 978-0-521-12444-7 Paperback
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© in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org
Cambridge University Press
978-0-521-19755-7 - Rousseau's Social Contract: An Introduction
David Lay Williams
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In Memory of Richard Taylor Williams, Sr.
© in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org
Cambridge University Press
978-0-521-19755-7 - Rousseau's Social Contract: An Introduction
David Lay Williams
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© in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org
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978-0-521-19755-7 - Rousseau's Social Contract: An Introduction
David Lay Williams
Frontmatter
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Contents
Acknowledgments page x i
Frequently Cited Works x iii
Introduction 1
1 Book I 26
2 Book II 64
3 Book III 107
4 Book IV 156
5 Conclusion 216
Appendix A. On the General Will 2 45
Appendix B. On Women in the S ocial Contract? 2 72
References 2 83
Index 3 01
ix
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