Thomas Rousseau's View On Inequality And Equality

Great Essays
Rousseau is a man who strongly believes in virtue and strives for the betterment of man. His view on inequality and injustice demonstrate that his state of nature is different from Thomas Hobbs. He points out that the state of nature of man is not evil like Hobbs might suggest, but he proposes that man is neither good nor evil but is born sub-moral . As our focus on the self and the arts become bigger than our focus on virtue and morality, we leave that state of sub-morality. Looking at the high levels of inequality taking place in our society, Rousseau would disapprove and suggest that focusing on compassion is what will solve the problem. When we as a society look beyond our hypocrisy and set aside our craving of only self-preservation and consider compassion, we can get to a place where we can rid ourselves from income segregation, and the ever growing gap in wealth, healthcare and education faced by our society.
Rousseau states that there are two types of inequality, Natural
…show more content…
If the women and children success are based on the man’s success, he is the only one who truly deserves equality in his eyes. To Rousseau, the inequalities between gender pay might not get him as upset as the difference between the pay of men. He would prefer the women to be as well behaved as the women in his beloved Geneva. But considering that recent evidence indicates that children’s neighborhood context, particularly the neighborhoods they live in when they are young, have long-term consequences for their later educational attainment, earning and childbearing .The U.S census Bureau also shows that 17% of Hispanics have health insurance while only 7% of White none Hispanics are uninsured . Since the neighborhood they reside in can often be predict their education and income level, we can conclude that the wealth of the father effects the children long after they leave the

Related Documents

  • Great Essays

    The idea of freedom in Jean Jacque Rousseau’s The Social Contract (1762) is present throughout the book and Rousseau’s own, personal understanding of freedom underpins his argument for his ideal state. In this essay I will argue that individual citizens aren’t truly free in every sense in Rousseau’s state as the sovereign has complete dominion over public matters and due to the sovereign explicitly being composed of every citizen, this could lead to nearly every problem being deemed within the public realm. Furthermore, one cannot be individually free, in my opinion, when one cannot voice dissent against the prevailing convention of society, as is the case in Rousseau’s state. To argue this thesis effectively I will explore what freedom means…

    • 2188 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    For Rousseau human nature is simple, innocent and pious and he based this notion on the premise of the “state of nature” where humans were free and equal, and just seek to satisfy their basic needs (Rousseau 1974, p.80). What is more, Rousseau claims that society, as a whole should be the one, which guided by its general will, set up the laws (Rousseau 1974, p.96). Nevertheless, Rousseau's principles are not longer workable within the present society due to the fact that we do not longer live in a state of nature; rather in a corrupted and unequal system. For this reason is determinant to consider the premise that Human beings are bad, ungrateful, and fickle or as the Italian politician Machiavelli asserted, “men are wicked and they never do good unless necessity drives them to do it “ (Viroli 1998, p.47).…

    • 662 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    On a superficial level, the root of the problem is the drive to compete and the drive to compare oneself to others. A political solution for this “compare and compete” problem can be theorized. The first potential solution that comes to mind is to find a way to equal the playing field until there becomes no need for comparison with others because we are all equal, and through this equality brings the end of competition, for what is achievable by one, is achievable by all. One way to accomplish this would be for the political power (i.e. the government) at hand to invent a means that impeded on any one individual’s advantage in society, whether it be intelligence, beauty, creativity, etc.. In Kurt Vonnegut’s short story, “Harrison Bergeron”,…

    • 1042 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Mission, a film set in 1507, reflects on a Jesuit mission settlement, torn apart by Spanish and Portuguese government. With the papacy caught in the midst of this turmoil, conflicting ideas of injustice and moral sense drive the message of the film. In relation to the Enlightenment, an epoch of modernized philosophical ideas from the 1400s through the 1600s, Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s ideas of individuality, human nature and corruption are best represented through themes of government, religion, and war in the film. An acclaimed philosopher in France, Rousseau fixated heavily on human nature and what influenced human beings to change. From innocence to malfeasance, Rousseau believed people metamorphosed into corrupt beings because of society;…

    • 1285 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    If men are equal, as Jean-Jacques Rousseau claims in the preface to his discourse on inequality (40), why do some men live in large lavish houses, while others struggle on the street, unsure of their next meal? The distance between the rich and the poor has been increasing steadily over the last decade, but in reality it has been expanding ever since man separated from Rousseau’s original state of nature. The state of nature is different than that which is natural, and within Rousseau’s state of nature, physical inequality is the only thing separating a man from another. Therefore, disregarding physical inequality, nature for man was equal and the state of nature provided an equal playing ground. As early as the preface, Rousseau realizes that in order for one to understand inequality, one must first attempt to understand man (39).…

    • 1335 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Jean Jacque Rousseau, one of the great philosophers of the French enlightenment, was born in Geneva, Switzerland, and raised by an aunt and uncle, after his mother died days after his birth. At the age of thirteen he was apprenticed to an engraver, but ran away three years later, eventually becoming the secretary for Madame Louise de Warens, who influenced his life and writings. In 1742, Rousseau went to Paris, where he became a friend of Denis Diderot, a French philosopher and the writer of Encyclopedie, the "bible" of the Enlightenment. Rousseau was a creative writer and used everything from opera to novels and romances to explain his philosophy. He believed that human beings are inherently good, but are corrupted by the evils of society.…

    • 460 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Rousseau argues that in nature, “a savage man’s body is the only instrument he knows, he employs it for a variety of purposes that, for lack of practice, ours are incapable of serving.” Rousseau immediately shows how society and civilization have decreased the nature of man because modern advancements have kept man from following natural physical improvements necessary for survival. Rousseau then explains how extreme inequality in our lifestyle exists when you look at distribution of labor and resources in society such as the excessive idleness among some, the excessive labor among others, the overly refined foods for the wealthy, and the lack of food for the poor. Humans are neither monogamous nor romantic and Rousseau states that “it is incontestable love itself, like all other passions, had acquired only in society that impetuous ardor which so often makes it lethal to men.” Finally, Rousseau asserts that society and civilization have removed mankind from its natural habitat with the introduction of language and abstract thought, both of which would not exist in…

    • 784 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    In this paper I am going to summarize Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s “Discourse on the Origin of Inequality” in which Rousseau theorizes that inequality is not a natural event, but an unfortunate byproduct of modern life. I will then provide a criticism of Rousseau’s argument, focusing on his decision to not discuss the relationship between natural and moral inequality. This criticism will then be countered by a theorized response from Rousseau’s perspective. The general argument presented by Rousseau is that the establishment of civil society and the associated progress of humanity is the underlying cause for the inequality between men.…

    • 1814 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Both Alexis de Tocqueville and Karl Marx examine the social change that nations go through either as a result of democracy diminishing Aristocratic ages or because of the wide spread of industrial capitalism. However, Marx and Tocqueville observe the impact of these social changes on the community differently. Marx writings are about how the European world was changing during his lifespan. He observes how the beginning of the Industrial Revolution creates an increase in the level of economic production, but also an immense increase of inequality in a society. On the contrary, Tocqueville analyzes the relationship between equality and liberty during the democratic ages vs. the aristocratic ages.…

    • 926 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    In his article, “Gentle Savages and Fierce Citizens against Civilization: Unraveling Rousseau’s Paradoxes,” author Matthew Mendham further explores Shklar’s work by creating the “Shklarian Model” which is simply split between what is best for a man and what is best for a citizen as being distinct ideals (172). Mendham further elaborates on this argument by explaining the position of Leo Strauss, who argued that Rousseau’s political solution “ought to be read as merely intended for modern consumption” since it is impossible for humans to ever truly return to the ideal solitude and naturalness of the original state of human nature (172). In fact, in his Confessions Rousseau posited that “he alone has maintained the soul of original, natural…

    • 1754 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    Rousseau places a great deal of importance on the common good and therefore somewhat rejects personal freedoms. He believes that in order to be a part of the Social Contract, in which he believes man is free, personal freedom must be ignored. In the state of nature, man is free to indulge in their personal needs and freedoms and therefore must be disregarded in order to unsure the common good. If an individual disagrees with the majority, they are inherently wrong and should be forced to obey the general will. Rousseau states, “whoever refuses to obey the general will will be forced to do so by the entire community” (Rousseau, 150).…

    • 1838 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    Rousseau observes human nature as innately good when it’s extracted from all social attachments and the immensely corrupting overall influence of society itself. Society, for Rousseau in his eyes is a grand impulse where the decencies of human beings are displayed. Rousseau 's political theories are derived from the seemingly simple idea of arranging humans into a social setting that’s bare of corrupting elements of society. Rousseau 's leap toward a social and political order of amour propre over amour de soi is evidence of this. Rousseau derives a substantial amount of his beliefs from morals such as equality.…

    • 1209 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the American dream it is the very idea that you do not have to be pigeon holed in your social class; rather with hard work, determination, and the right opportunities one can change their social standing the world. However, many times Rousseau is correct where the “moral” inequalities imposed by society have caused people to not make their “American dream” come true. For example, the funding model for school districts. Schools receive funding from the government depending on how well the school’s students test on the standardized tests. However, the schools’ districts are formed by the social-economic standings of the area.…

    • 1063 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Because it doesn’t matter how much we complain about poor management of the state’ dealings and/or regulations imposed to us. There are no excuses for resisting power because it is the only thing between us and what we most want to avoid, the State of Nature. John Locke had a different approach as to the kind of place the State of Nature is, and consequently his argument concerning the Social Contract and the relationship between men and authority varies. According to Locke, the State of Nature is the natural condition of mankind.…

    • 1284 Words
    • 6 Pages
    • 3 Works Cited
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Rousseau On Inequality

    • 868 Words
    • 4 Pages

    When Rousseau spoke about the nature of inequality among man, he spoke about how changes in the equality of society were not immediate but gradual. When mankind was in its infancy, society was divided into men who “were hunters and warriors” (Rousseau 138) and women who led a more “sedentary” (Rousseau 145) life. However, according to Rousseau the turning…

    • 868 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays