Material for Week 1:
Theories of Human Nature and The Social Contract
In order to understand the varied perspectives of the classical social theorists, we must first understand the major philosophers they studied. This is especially true in terms of the social contract theorists. The social contract philosophers had very different perspectives on what the “social contract” entailed, and these theories were undoubtedly influenced by their views of human nature. In order to see the divergent perspectives on these matters, we will focus on two of the most influential and divergent views on these subjects–Hobbes and Rousseau:
Read the introductory paragraph and especially the sections on Hobbes and Rousseau in The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy Contemporary Critiques of Social Contract Theory
Watch the following video recordings from https://oyc.yale.edu/sociology/socy-151
Under the “Sessions” Tab watch Professor Iván Szelényi’s discussion of Hobbes and Rousseau (his accent is rather thick, but the subtitles make the discussion easily understandable, I think). Focus specifically on the following video “Chapters” of his Lectures:
Lecture 2 on Hobbes, especially Chapters 3-6 (roughly 19:00-41:00 minutes)
SOCY 151 – Lecture 2 – Hobbes: Authority, Human Rights and Social Order
Lecture 5 on Rousseau, especially Chapters 3-5 (26:00-40:00)
SOCY 151 – Lecture 5 – Rousseau: Popular Sovereignty and General Will
And Lecture 6 on Rousseau, especially Chapters 3-4 (19:00-37:00)
SOCY 151 – Lecture 6 – Rousseau on State of Nature and Education
Once you have thoroughly reviewed material for week 1 please summarize your understanding of these philosophers in 3-4 pages (double spaced, college standard) in terms of:
Hobbes and Rousseau’s views of human nature (aka the state of nature)
How are their views of human nature similar
How are their views of human nature different
Their views on the social contract in terms of its necessity, and what it entails:
Why is a social contract necessary
Hobbes Argument
Rousseau’s Argument
What are the mutual obligations between the governors and the governed
Hobbes Argument
Rousseau’s Argument
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