A discussion of Rousseau’s and Durkheim’s concepts of the social contract.
This paper explores the views of Rousseau and Durkheim on freedom and equality and addresses Durkheim’s concept of anomie. The paper discusses how Rousseau believed in a greater unity of opposite classes, while Durkheim focused on social cohesion and upheld society over individual needs and desires. The paper explains how Durkheim’s conception of society is observed in his theory of religion, and posits that his idea of a moral-legal code to ensure equity is probably the best idea for bringing justice and order together.
“The main concept in the passage from “The Social Contract” is social equality, along with freedom. Freedom and equality, for Rousseau, form the basis for the social contract. He believed that certain inequalities were inevitable; one of these was inequality of property. Another of his ideas was that, in relation to the state, “the individual does not simply subordinate himself, but rather assents only to such obligations that he himself recognizes as valid and necessary” (Zeitlin, 2001, p. 25). For Durkheim, what is essential about the social contract is not the subjective will of the individual, but only the objective conditions under which such a contract comes about. Furthermore, inequality of property is never a concern for Durkheim in relation to the issue of social inequality. Such inequality is a matter of injustice, and can be resolved through “a juridical-moral bond between two subjects that specifies their mutual rights and obligations” (Zeitlin, p. 343).”