Rousseau on Inequality
Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Discourse on Inequality (also known as the Second Discourse) tells the story of all human history to answer one simple question: how did we end up in such an unequal world? David explores the steps Rousseau traces in the fall of humankind and asks whether this is a radical alternative to the vision offered by Hobbes or just a variant on it. Is Rousseau really such a nice philosopher? Free online version of text Recommended version to purchase Going deeper… Leo Damrosch, Jean Jacques Rousseau: Restless Genius (2005) David Edmonds and John Eidinow, Rousseau’s Dog (2007) Pankaj Mishra, ‘How Rousseau predicted Trump’, The New Yorker (2016) (Audio) In Our Time, The Social Contract See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.