Rousseau Social Contract Theory

Introduction
Several theorists have used social contract theory to understand the government’s role in taking care of the public and addressing the public’s needs. Current political issues offer further examination of social contract theory and how it may help with understanding government obligation and public participation. Rousseau's social contract theory is best and most relevant for understanding and offering solutions to contemporary political issues like mandatory vaccination, taxation, and universal healthcare because it offers a foundation from which to explain the perceived obligations of both the government and the public. Rousseau’s version of social contract theory contrasted against other theorists like Hobbes's and Locke's social contact theories demonstrates how one interpretation of a theory may be better suited for modern political issues over others.
According to social contract theory via Locke’s interpretation, when the government remains unsuccessful in securing natural rights or fulfilling society’s best interest often recognized as the "general will" according to Rousseau, citizens have the options of withdrawing their responsibility to obey, or alter the leadership via elections or other means that may include violence. Rousseau understood that democracy in this case, self-rule was the best means of ensuring welfare while maintaining a person’s individual freedom under law’s rule. Such thinking is a key strength of his version of social theory. However, the inherent weakness is the idea that the public has the right to choose a better leader. With the way politics goes in many countries, often political leaders are far from qualified, yet still get elected due to resources and popularity. Rousseau’s version of social contract theory has a social aspect to it that provides a better context to analyze what parts of the theory may provide a basis for resolution of modern political problems.
Some key terms to understand involve social contract theory. For example, social contract is an understood arrangement between members of society to collaborate in exchange of social benefits. A contract is an agreement or rule-based relationship among at least two bodies. The State of Nature represents the hypothetical conditions of how people’s lives were before the existence of societies.[footnoteRef:1] According to Rousseau, the sovereign relates to all of a nation’s citizens acting collectively. General will refers to society’s best interests. Although there are varying interpretations of the Noble Savage, Rousseau’s offer what some may see as the most sympathetic version; essentially men in a state of nature know not of evil and good. However, their independence, passions, and ignorance of vice, allow them to not committing acts to the detriment of others. [1: Professor John Rawls, A Theory of Justice: Original Edition (Belknap Press, 2009)]
A modern interpretation of social contract theory refers to two things: the ethical origins of the principles allowing sovereign power to be legitimate and/or just and the historical origins of said sovereign power.[footnoteRef:2] Some potential solutions that may come out of understanding social contract theory and applying it to contemporary political issues, is the public’s right to choose what kind of healthcare options the government provides, what kind of vaccinations should be mandatory, and what forms of taxation must be allowed. If the government has an obligation to the citizens of a country, and especially within Rousseau’s interpretation, the citizens can and should be active in changing the legislation to suit their needs at the same time, recognizing the sovereignty of the government and the limits of potential changes.[footnoteRef:3] [2: Ernest Baker, Social Contract, essays by Locke, Hume and Rousseau (Read Books Ltd, 2013)] [3: David L. Williams, Rousseau's Social Contract: An Introduction (Cambridge University Press, 2014)]
Argument
Plato believes justice to be a virtue that established rational order. Parts perform their appropriate role, not interfering with other parts’ proper functioning.[footnoteRef:4] According to Plato, the need for justice could play well in Rousseau’s social contract theory, especially considering how social contract theory came to be in the past. “The patriciate resorted to social contract theory in order to legitimize its oligarchical regime and to resist popular demands for democratization.”[footnoteRef:5] The past saw social contract theory as a means of moving away from justice. However, thanks to Rousseau’s interpretation, it became a theory used to seek justice and make society’s needs priority, something worth fighting for in the political nature of the modern world. [4: Professor John Rawls, A Theory of Justice: Original Edition (Belknap Press, 2009)] [5: Helena Rosenblatt, Rousseau and Geneva: From the First Discourse to the Social Contract, 1749-1762 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006), 101.]
From the Baker text, page 25, “There is the idea of the contract of society. The theory of a contract of government is a theory that the State, in the sense of the government, is based on a contract between ruler and subjects.”[footnoteRef:6] Such a quote represents the weaknesses of Locke’s and Hobbes’ interpretation of social contract theory. To clarify, Hobbes’ mention of dominion is a weak argument regarding social contract theory. “He that hath the Dominion over the Child, hath Dominion also over their Childrens Children. For he that hath Dominion over the person of a man, hath Dominion over all that is his…”[footnoteRef:7] When looking at Rousseau’s belief that people are inherent social beings and within this belief, the social aspect underpins the political, one can see that utter nonsense of Hobbes’ idea of Dominion. What about Dominion over self? What about Dominion over property and the various definitions of property? Such an idea may be misconstrued into a means of controlling people regardless of their natural born rights. [6: Ernest Baker, Social Contract, essays by Locke, Hume and Rousseau (Read Books Ltd, 2013), 25.] [7: Thomas Hobbes, George H. Smith, and Wendy McElroy, Leviathan ([United States]: Wilder Publications, 2015), 124.]
Locke’s understanding of social contract theory can be seen in his work, Second Treatise of Government. “IF man in the state of nature be so free, as has been said; if he be absolute lord of his own person and possessions, equal to the greatest, and subject to no body, why will he part with his freedom?”[footnoteRef:8] When people engage in a contract, they may relinquish certain rights or privileges in order to gain something in return like safety, stability and protection. Rousseau understood the social aspect of politics and saw that the ‘contract’ between a government and a people meant a compromise in many ways of natural born rights. By relinquishing certain freedoms, one gains other rights like private property, the government then protects. However, that protection comes at a cost, like taxation, bringing into perspective the modern political issues facing the world today. [8: John Locke and C. B. Macpherson, Second Treatise of Government (Hackett Publishing, 1980), 65.]
Roussuau believed in citizens' taxation as part of his social contract theory. It not only builds a strong, effective state and an engaged civic community, but he sees the state as made up of individual citizens that all benefit from taxation. “…he sees the state as entitled to raise taxation and to modify the various ‘incidents’ of property, especially by regulating wills, inheritances, and contract.”[footnoteRef:9] When a society enters a social contract with a government, they give up rights like owning private property without taxation, to then gain access to protection from would-be thieves and so forth that come from existing as an unprotected person. [9: Christopher Bertram, Routledge Philosophy Guidebook to Rousseau and the Social Contract (London: Routledge, 2004), 91.]
The same can be said for mandatory vaccination. Mandatory vaccination means safeguarding the health of the public.[footnoteRef:10] The government remains in charge of safeguarding the public from health epidemics like contagious diseases. By relinquishing the option of vaccinating a child, the public gains protection from disease that comes from not vaccinating. [10: Norman Daniels, Just Health: Meeting Health Needs Fairly (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007)]
Universal healthcare is another key issue people often find difficult to support due to potential loss of freedoms like options for private insurance and medical treatment. However, with the government in control of healthcare, everyone within the nation is entitled to potential free healthcare at roughly the same quality and rate.[footnoteRef:11] They relinquish their potential options for a guaranteed level of service provided by the government. The trade-off then becomes what Rousseau saw, as a necessity. Looking at an example of the past, equality is something social contract theory provided a decent foundation for, because within the theory, the government became responsible for assuring equal opportunity to accumulate and own private property after the Civil War through amendments and Supreme Court cases.[footnoteRef:12] [11: Ryan Muldoon, Social Contract Theory for a Diverse World: Beyond Tolerance (London: Routledge, 2016)] [12: Aaron James, Fairness in Practice: A Social Contract for a Global Economy (Oxford [etc.]: Oxford University Press, 2013)]
Conclusion
In conclusion, contemporary political issues like taxation, mandatory vaccination, and universal healthcare can be addressed within the theoretical framework of social contract theory. Rousseau’s interpretation of social contract theory provides the best understanding of the obligations of both the government and the people. While people should respect the laws that the government makes and passes, the people also possess the right to contest these laws and fight for a potential rewriting of them, to suit the best interest of society. There are a multitude of ways to understand social contract theory. Both Hobbes and Locke have their own understanding and perspective. However, the social aspect of Rousseau’s interpretation and the innate belief in the rights of the people, makes Rousseau’s version more applicable to modern times.

Bibliography
Baker, Ernest. Social Contract, essays by Locke, Hume and Rousseau. Read Books Ltd, 2013.
Bertram, Christopher. Routledge Philosophy Guidebook to Rousseau and the Social Contract. London: Routledge, 2004.
Daniels, Norman. Just Health: Meeting Health Needs Fairly. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007.
Hobbes, Thomas, George H. Smith, and Wendy McElroy. Leviathan. [United States]: Wilder Publications, 2015.
James, Aaron. Fairness in Practice: A Social Contract for a Global Economy. Oxford [etc.]: Oxford University Press, 2013.
Locke, John, and C. B. Macpherson. Second Treatise of Government. Hackett Publishing, 1980.
Muldoon, Ryan. Social Contract Theory for a Diverse World: Beyond Tolerance. London: Routledge, 2016.
Rawls, Professor John. A Theory of Justice: Original Edition. Belknap Press, 2009.
Rosenblatt, Helena. Rousseau and Geneva: From the First Discourse to the Social Contract, 1749-1762. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006.
Williams, David L. Rousseau's Social Contract: An Introduction. Cambridge University Press, 2014.