Jean-Jacques Rousseau: od „Rozpravy o původu nerovnosti“ ke „Společenské smlouvě“

In his book on Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Milan Sobotka, a professor emeritus of modern philosophy at Charles University in Prague, starts from the premise that Rousseau discovered the value of the other (and others) for each individual. First, in his Discourse on the Origin of Inequality, Rousseau focuses on the value of the other in the theory of intersubjectivity, whose first proponent probably was this French philosopher. Later, particularly in the text entitled Of the Social Contract, he continues on to the concept of the other and others as subjects of mutual recognition. According to Hegel, Rousseau was the first philosopher who understood the free will of individuals to be a medium of mutual recognition, which constitutes the state. Hegel thus grants Rousseau a special status in modern political theory. From this perspective, Rousseau’s appeals for more property equality in society are of secondary importance if they transgress the boundaries of political equality. Hence, Milan Sobotka focuses mainly on the meaning of the other and others for the constitution and the political status of an individual.