SOCIAL CONTRACT THEORY

Social Contract Theory

Social Contract Theory

If one adopts the perspective of a specifically social theory, one might begin by noting that the widespread use of the term social in the nineteenth century owed much to the fame of The Social Contract. This work, however, is decidedly more a work of political than social theory. The society of the social contract is an exclusively political society: For it is formed by a political act, held together by a political will, and ordered relative to political ends. Moreover, the members of this society must present themselves exclusively as citizens, not as social ...