Social Stratification
Jean Jacques Rousseau’s Concept of People
1
Patrice Canivez
The final, definitive version of this paper has been published in Philosophy and Social
Criticism, June 2004; vol. 30, 4: pp. 393-412, by SAGE Publications Ltd. All rights reserved. http://psc.sagepub.com/ Abstract
Rousseau’s political theory apparently leads us to choose between patriotism and cosmopolitism. The two major works published in 1762, On the Social Contract and Emile, would represent the two sides of the alternative. However, the opposition between patriotism and cosmopolitism is the ultimate development of an internal tension between two aspects of
Rousseau’s political concept of people: the intersubjectivity that permits the formation of the general will; and the individual’s devotion to the state. On the one hand, the political community appears as a distributive totality. On the other hand, it is viewed as a collective totality. When generalized, intersubjectivity leads to the formation of both the social concept of people and the moral concept of humanity, while patriotism requires the individual’s loyalty to the nation. In order to maintain the coherence of the very political concept of people and to solve the main political problem – which is to reconcile security and liberty – it is necessary to overcome the dichotomy between cosmopolitism and patriotism. Emile and
Rousseau’s original plan for On the Social Contract are consistent on that point.
Key words cosmopolitism · general will · intersubjectivity · nation · patriotism · people
In 1762, Rousseau published two major works: On the Social Contract and Emile. The first book contains Rousseau’s theory of the state. In the second book, Rousseau describes a young man’s education, from his birth to his marriage. In this book, Rousseau’s purpose is not only to put forth his ideas on education: Emile is a long meditation on the human condition.
Rousseau is a singular philosopher. He takes up
1
Patrice Canivez
The final, definitive version of this paper has been published in Philosophy and Social
Criticism, June 2004; vol. 30, 4: pp. 393-412, by SAGE Publications Ltd. All rights reserved. http://psc.sagepub.com/ Abstract
Rousseau’s political theory apparently leads us to choose between patriotism and cosmopolitism. The two major works published in 1762, On the Social Contract and Emile, would represent the two sides of the alternative. However, the opposition between patriotism and cosmopolitism is the ultimate development of an internal tension between two aspects of
Rousseau’s political concept of people: the intersubjectivity that permits the formation of the general will; and the individual’s devotion to the state. On the one hand, the political community appears as a distributive totality. On the other hand, it is viewed as a collective totality. When generalized, intersubjectivity leads to the formation of both the social concept of people and the moral concept of humanity, while patriotism requires the individual’s loyalty to the nation. In order to maintain the coherence of the very political concept of people and to solve the main political problem – which is to reconcile security and liberty – it is necessary to overcome the dichotomy between cosmopolitism and patriotism. Emile and
Rousseau’s original plan for On the Social Contract are consistent on that point.
Key words cosmopolitism · general will · intersubjectivity · nation · patriotism · people
In 1762, Rousseau published two major works: On the Social Contract and Emile. The first book contains Rousseau’s theory of the state. In the second book, Rousseau describes a young man’s education, from his birth to his marriage. In this book, Rousseau’s purpose is not only to put forth his ideas on education: Emile is a long meditation on the human condition.
Rousseau is a singular philosopher. He takes up