Download or read book Engaging with Rousseau written by Avi Lifschitz and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2016-07-28 with total page 245 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Jean-Jacques Rousseau has been cast as a champion of Enlightenment and a beacon of Romanticism, a father figure of radical revolutionaries and totalitarian dictators alike, an inventor of the modern notion of the self, and an advocate of stern ancient republicanism. Engaging with Rousseau treats his writings as an enduring topic of debate, examining the diverse responses they have attracted from the Enlightenment to the present. Such notions as the general will were, for example, refracted through very different prisms during the struggle for independence in Latin America and in social conflicts in Eastern Europe, or modified by thinkers from Kant to contemporary political theorists. Beyond Rousseau's ideas, his public image too travelled around the world. This book examines engagement with Rousseau's works as well as with his self-fashioning; especially in turbulent times, his defiant public identity and his call for regeneration were admired or despised by intellectuals and political agents.
Download or read book Engaging with Rousseau Reaction and Interpretation from the Eighteenth Century to the Present written by Avi Lifschitz and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An examination of responses to Jean-Jacques Rousseau's works and self-fashioned image from the Enlightenment onwards across Europe and the Americas.
Download or read book Rousseau Nature and the Problem of the Good Life written by Laurence D. Cooper and published by Penn State Press. This book was released on 2021-12 with total page 241 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The rise of modern science created a crisis for Western moral and political philosophy, which had theretofore relied either on Christian theology or Aristotelian natural teleology as guarantors of an objective standard for &"the good life.&" This book examines Rousseau's effort to show how and why, despite this challenge from science (which he himself intensified by equating our subhuman origins with our natural state), nature can remain a standard for human behavior. While recognizing an original goodness in human being in the state of nature, Rousseau knew this to be too low a standard and promoted the idea of &"the natural man living in the state of society,&" notably in Emile. Laurence Cooper shows how, for Rousseau, conscience&—understood as the &"love of order&"&—functions as the agent whereby simple savage sentiment is sublimated into a more refined &"civilized naturalness&" to which all people can aspire.
Download or read book Rousseau s Platonic Enlightenment written by David Lay Williams and published by Penn State Press. This book was released on 2010-11-01 with total page 356 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "In this sterling, deeply researched study, Williams explores how thinkers ranging from Hobbes to d'Holbach highlight various sets of ideas that Rousseau combated in developing his philosophical teaching. The account of Rousseau's predecessors who might be called Platonists is especially interesting, as is the account of those who qualify as materialists. Moreover, Williams provides a good overview of Rousseau's teaching, demonstrates a commendable grasp of the relevant secondary literature, and argues ably for the superiority of his own interpretations ... Clearly written and superbly organized, this book contributes much to Rousseau studies. An indispensable book for Rousseau scholars, this volume also will appeal to general readers and students at all levels."--C.E. Butterworth, CHOICE.
Download or read book Rousseau and the Problem of Human Relations written by John M. Warner and published by Penn State Press. This book was released on 2016-03-23 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this volume, John Warner grapples with one of Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s chief preoccupations: the problem of self-interest implicit in all social relationships. Not only did Rousseau never solve this problem, Warner argues, but he also believed it was fundamentally unsolvable—that social relationships could never restore wholeness to a self-interested human being. This engaging study is founded on two basic but important questions: what do we want out of human relationships, and are we able to achieve what we are after? Warner traces his answers through the contours of Rousseau’s thought on three distinct types of relationships—sexual love, friendship, and civil or political association—as well as alternate interpretations of Rousseau, such as that of the neo-Kantian Rawlsian school. The result is an insightful exploration of the way Rousseau inspires readers to imbue social relations with purpose and meaning, only to show the impossibility of reaching wholeness through such relationships. While Rousseau may raise our hopes only to dash them, Rousseau and the Problem of Human Relations demonstrates that his ambitious failure offers unexpected insight into the human condition and into the limits of Rousseau’s critical act.
Download or read book Rousseau s Social Contract written by David Lay Williams and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2014-01-13 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: If the greatness of a philosophical work can be measured by the volume and vehemence of the public response, there is little question that Rousseau's Social Contract stands out as a masterpiece. Within a week of its publication in 1762 it was banished from France. Soon thereafter, Rousseau fled to Geneva, where he saw the book burned in public. At the same time, many of his contemporaries, such as Kant, considered Rousseau to be 'the Newton of the moral world', as he was the first philosopher to draw attention to the basic dignity of human nature. The Social Contract has never ceased to be read and debated in the 250 years since its publication. Rousseau's Social Contract: An Introduction offers a thorough and systematic tour of this notoriously paradoxical and challenging text. David Lay Williams offers readers a chapter-by-chapter reading of the Social Contract, squarely confronting these interpretive obstacles. The book also features a special extended appendix dedicated to outlining Rousseau's famous conception of the general will, which has been the object of controversy since the Social Contract's publication in 1762.
Download or read book The Discourses and Other Political Writings written by Jean-Jacques Rousseau and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 437 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Rousseau A Guide for the Perplexed written by Matthew Simpson and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2010-06-15 with total page 157 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Continuum's Guides for the Perplexed are clear, concise and accessible introductions to thinkers, writers and subjects that students and readers can find especially challenging. Concentrating specifically on what it is that makes the subject difficult to fathom, these books explain and explore key themes and ideas, guiding the reader towards a thorough understanding of demanding material. Jean-Jacques Rousseau was one of the most engaging yet enigmatic philosophers of the eighteenth century. He wrote with a flair and directness unique among great thinkers, yet beneath the surface of his works there is an extraordinarily complex theory of human nature and society. His diverse body of writing often leaves students struggling to find a coherent philosophical outlook. Rousseau: A Guide for the Perplexed is a clear and thorough account of Rousseau's major works and ideas, providing an ideal guide to the complicated thought of this key philosopher. The book covers the whole range of Rousseau's life and work, offering a detailed review of his landmark philosophical texts, including The Social Contract and Emile, together with examination of his influential contribution to the social sciences . The book provides a cogent and reliable survey of the famous paradoxes in his philosophy and shows how they fit together into a coherent and important theory of culture and politics. This book is the ideal companion to the study of this most influential and challenging philosopher.
Download or read book Perfection and Disharmony in the Thought of Jean Jacques Rousseau written by Jonathan Marks and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2005-10-06 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Publisher description
Download or read book Rousseau s Reader written by John T. Scott and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2020-05-04 with total page 339 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: On his famous walk to Vincennes to visit the imprisoned Diderot, Rousseau had what he called an “illumination”—the realization that man was naturally good but becomes corrupted by the influence of society—a fundamental change in Rousseau’s perspective that would animate all of his subsequent works. At that moment, Rousseau “saw” something he had hitherto not seen, and he made it his mission to help his readers share that vision through an array of rhetorical and literary techniques. In Rousseau’s Reader, John T. Scott looks at the different strategies Rousseau used to engage and persuade the readers of his major philosophical works, including the Social Contract, Discourse on Inequality, and Emile. Considering choice of genre; textual structure; frontispieces and illustrations; shifting authorial and narrative voice; addresses to readers that alternately invite and challenge; apostrophe, metaphor, and other literary devices; and, of course, paradox, Scott explores how the form of Rousseau’s writing relates to the content of his thought and vice versa. Through this skillful interplay of form and content, Rousseau engages in a profoundly transformative dialogue with his readers. While most political philosophers have focused, understandably, on Rousseau’s ideas, Scott shows convincingly that the way he conveyed them is also of vital importance, especially given Rousseau’s enduring interest in education. Giving readers the key to Rousseau’s style, Scott offers fresh and original insights into the relationship between the substance of his thought and his literary and rhetorical techniques, which enhance our understanding of Rousseau’s project and the audiences he intended to reach.
Download or read book Rousseau on Education Freedom and Judgment written by Denise Schaeffer and published by Penn State Press. This book was released on 2014-01-02 with total page 370 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Rousseau on Education, Freedom, and Judgment, Denise Schaeffer challenges the common view of Rousseau as primarily concerned with conditioning citizens’ passions in order to promote republican virtue and unreflective patriotism. Schaeffer argues that, to the contrary, Rousseau’s central concern is the problem of judgment and how to foster it on both the individual and political level in order to create the conditions for genuine self-rule. Offering a detailed commentary on Rousseau’s major work on education, Emile, and a wide-ranging analysis of the relationship between Emile and several of Rousseau’s other works, Schaeffer explores Rousseau’s understanding of what good judgment is, how it is learned, and why it is central to the achievement and preservation of human freedom. The model of Rousseauian citizenship that emerges from Schaeffer’s analysis is more dynamic and self-critical than is often recognized. This book demonstrates the importance of Rousseau’s contribution to our understanding of the faculty of judgment, and, more broadly, invites a critical reevaluation of Rousseau’s understanding of education, citizenship, and both individual and collective freedom.
Download or read book The Major Political Writings of Jean Jacques Rousseau written by Jean-Jacques Rousseau and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2012-10-17 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This “fresh new rendition of Rousseau’s major political writings is a boon for scholars and students alike”—with a critical introduction by the translator (Richard Boyd, Georgetown University). Individualist and communitarian. Anarchist and totalitarian. Progressive and reactionary. Since the eighteenth century, Jean-Jacques Rousseau has been called all of these things. Few philosophers have been the subject of such intense debate, yet almost everyone agrees that Rousseau is among the most important political thinkers in history. Renowned Rousseau scholar John T. Scott highlights his enduring influence with this superb new edition of his major political writings. This volume includes authoritative and lucid new translations of the Discourse on the Sciences and Arts, the Discourse on the Origin and Foundations of Inequality Among Men, and On the Social Contract. The two Discourses show Rousseau developing his well-known conception of the natural goodness of man and the problems posed by life in society. With the Social Contract, Rousseau became the first major thinker to argue that democracy is the only legitimate form of political organization. Scott’s extensive introduction enhances our understanding of these foundational writings, providing background information, social and historical context, and guidance for interpreting the works. Throughout, translation and editorial notes clarify ideas and terms that might not be immediately familiar to most readers.
Download or read book Dreaming with Rousseau written by Julie Merberg and published by Chronicle Books. This book was released on 2007-08-23 with total page 24 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Set against the backdrop of well-known works by the artist Henri Rousseau, rhyming text reveals a dream of the jungle and its inhabitants.
Download or read book The Challenge of Rousseau written by Eve Grace and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2013 with total page 343 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The essays in this volume focus on Rousseau's genuine yet undervalued stature as a philosopher.
Download or read book Dropping in on Rousseau written by Pamela Geiger Stephens and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Join Puffer and artist Henri Rousseau in this engaging companion book to the "Dropping in on Rousseau" video. Combining clever illustrations with masterworks, Dropping in on Rousseau will help teach children to make their own interpretations about works of art. 32 pages, hardcover.
Download or read book New Learning written by Mary Kalantzis and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2012-06-29 with total page 369 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Fully updated and revised, the second edition of New Learning explores the contemporary debates and challenges in education and considers how schools can prepare their students for the future. New Learning, Second Edition is an inspiring and comprehensive resource for pre-service and in-service teachers alike.
Download or read book Rousseau and Hobbes written by Robin Douglass and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2015-02-12 with total page 342 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Robin Douglass presents the first comprehensive study of Jean-Jacques Rousseau's engagement with Thomas Hobbes. He reconstructs the intellectual context of this engagement to reveal the deeply polemical character of Rousseau's critique of Hobbes and to show how Rousseau sought to expose that much modern natural law and doux commerce theory was, despite its protestations to the contrary, indebted to a Hobbesian account of human nature and the origins of society. Throughout the book Douglass explores the reasons why Rousseau both followed and departed from Hobbes in different places, while resisting the temptation to present him as either a straightforwardly Hobbesian or anti-Hobbesian thinker. On the one hand, Douglass reveals the extent to which Rousseau was occupied with problems of a fundamentally Hobbesian nature and the importance, to both thinkers, of appealing to the citizens' passions in order to secure political unity. On the other hand, Douglass argues that certain ideas at the heart of Rousseau's philosophy--free will and the natural goodness of man--were set out to distance him from positions associated with Hobbes. Douglass advances an original interpretation of Rousseau's political philosophy, emerging from this encounter with Hobbesian ideas, which focuses on the interrelated themes of nature, free will, and the passions. Douglass distances his interpretation from those who have read Rousseau as a proto-Kantian and instead argues that his vision of a well-ordered republic was based on cultivating man's naturally good passions to render the life of the virtuous citizen in accordance with nature.
