Rousseau on war. How to maintain the independence of a republic
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Result code in IS VaVaI
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Result on the web
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DOI - Digital Object Identifier
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Alternative languages
Result language
angličtina
Original language name
Rousseau on war. How to maintain the independence of a republic
Original language description
In this paper I examine Rousseau’s view on war in the context of republican theory, focusing on Rousseau’s writings on Corsica (Projet de Constitution pour la Corse) and on Polish government (Considérations sur le Gouvernement de Pologne). Rousseau discusses the topic of war and peace throughout his work. Unlike Hobbes, he thinks that war does not exist in the state of nature: man is a self-sufficient being who does not experience the passions that give rise to enmity among men. These passions are the fruit of a developing society, when love of one-self (amour de soi) is transformed into self-love (amour-propre). Moreover, Rousseau characterizes war as a ‘relation between things’, not a relation between men. Thus, war exists only between states, and at its core is a dispute over property. Corsica and its armed struggle is a specific case of the fight for independence, which, according to Rousseau, fulfils the characteristics of ‘war’. Yet, how can the Corsicans and the Poles preserve their independence against a much stronger opponent (the Genoese Republic supported by France in the case of Corsica and Russia in the case of Poland)? Both nations are weak, still, according to Rousseau, they cannot rely on alliance treaties with other states that can ‘bind the weak to the strong, but never the strong to the weak’. What solution does Rousseau offer in order to maintain peace and independence? As we shall see, the economic self-sufficiency and good morals are crucial. Yet, are these sufficient against the great warring powers?
Czech name
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Czech description
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Classification
Type
O - Miscellaneous
CEP classification
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OECD FORD branch
60301 - Philosophy, History and Philosophy of science and technology
Result continuities
Project
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Continuities
I - Institucionalni podpora na dlouhodoby koncepcni rozvoj vyzkumne organizace
Others
Publication year
2024
Confidentiality
S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů