Commentary

• The Supposed Primitivism of Rousseau’s “Discourse on Inequality”

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  Arthur O. Lovejoy, "The Supposed Primitivism of Rousseau's 'Discourse on Inequality'" Modern Philology , Vol. 21, No. 2 (Nov., 1923), pp. 165-186.
  Excerpt: The notion  that Rousseau’s Discourse  on Inequality  was essentially  a glorification  of the state of nature and that its influence  tended  wholly or chiefly  to promote “primitivism” is one of the most  persistent  of… More

• [Book] Jean-Jacques Rousseau: Moralist

  - C.W. Hendel, Jean-Jacques Rousseau: Moralist (Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merril, 1934).
  Excerpt: Late in the manhood of Rousseau the moralist was born. Ordinary men who mature under parental care and acquire their moral principles through the slow and unconscious processes of habit scarcely know such discovery of themselves as moral beings. But… More

• Natural Right and History

  - Leo Strauss, “Rousseau”, in Natural Right and History (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1953), pp. 252-293.
  Excerpt: The first crisis of modernity occurred in the thought of Jean-Jacques Rousseau.  Rousseau was not the first to feel that the modern venture was a radical error and to seek the remedy in a return to classical thought.  It suffices to mention the… More

• Rousseau the Pessimistic Evolutionist

  - Bertrand de Jouvenel, “Rousseau the Pessimistic Evolutionist,” Yale French Studies, No. 28, (1961), pp.83-96.
  Scanned excerpt: Rousseau had a profound impact upon the way of life of the late XVIIIth century: thanks to him many parents became aware of and  attentive to their  children; he fostered enjoyment of natural beauties and contributed to a change in the… More

• The Political Philosophy of Rousseau

  - Roger Masters, The Political Philosophy of Rousseau. (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1968).
  From the publisher: Masters writes in his introduction about the unity of Rousseau’s works: Man is naturally good but it is society that depraves. That is one way to characterize Rousseau’s thought. Man is motivated by two forces. One is… More

• Perfection and Disharmony in the Thought of Jean-Jacques Rousseau

  - Jonathan Marks, Perfection and Disharmony in the Thought of Jean-Jacques Rousseau. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005).
  From the publisher: In Perfection and Disharmony in the Thought of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Jonathan Marks offers a new interpretation of the philosopher’s thought and its place in the contemporary debate between liberals and communitarians. Against… More

• Rousseau’s Theodicy of Self-Love: Evil, Rationality, and the Drive for Recognition

  - Frederick Neuhouser, Rousseau's Theodicy of Self-Love: Evil, Rationality, and the Drive for Recognition (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008).
  From the publisher: This book is the first comprehensive study of Rousseau’s rich and complex theory of the type of self-love (amour propre ) that, for him, marks the central difference between humans and the beasts. Amour propre is the passion that… More