POLS 237 Lecture Notes - Polytheism

• School: U of S
• Department: Political Studies
• Course: POLS 237
• Professor: Neil Hibbert

Document Summary

For rousseau, the state is nothing but exercise for the general will. Once these private wills have cancelled themselves out, what remains is the lack of interest, or general will. It is utterly on the basis of common interest. When sovereignty is directed towards particular interest, this is beyond legitimate political authority: the general will is always right and it will always tend towards the public good and public equality. Perhaps we are reluctant to talk about the common good: the general will is discovered through the deliberation of citizens, we, together, try to discover what the common good is. Deliberation can be corrupted: will work away from the general good once private interests are discussed, the will of each these associations, the sovereign can only act the when the populous is assembled. The health of a society will be exhibited through the agreement of the will of the majority.