Questions tagged [social-contract]

39 questions
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Are there opposites to the "social contract theory" where humans are regarded as naturally social beings, and yet individualism is a human invention?

The social contract theories assume that people are "naturally individuals", and they give up some of their individuality in a "social contract". However, humans are also naturally social animals. Therefore, it is logically equally plausible to…
J Li
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How does majority opinion entail individual error in Rousseau's Social Contract?

Exactly how does it follow for Rousseau that when I and the rest of the citizenry deliberate under the conditions he prescribes in the Social Contract, if I disagree with the majority , I am in error ? The relevant passage is CS IV.2 : 'When in the…
Geoffrey Thomas
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