Jean-Jacques Rousseau was many things, but chill was not one of them. In this patron-exclusive episode we have no chill either, getting into it about the renegade philosopher’s Discourse on Inequality, his totally bizarre fictional state of nature, and his stunningly prescient critique of modern society. You know, we aren’t primitivists at all, but sometimes it’s kinda hard to maintain that this whole civilization thing was worth it. We gave dogs anxiety disorders and spend our spare time licking the boots of our economic and political overlords! It sure seems like mistakes were made! Come, friends: take the Rousseau pill with us.

This is just a short  clip from the full episode, which is available to our subscribers on Patreon:

patreon.com/leftofphilosophy

References:

Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Discourse on Inequality, in The Collected Writings of Rousseau, vol. 3, ed. Roger D. Masters and Chistopher Kelly, trans. Judith R. Bush, Roger D. Masters, Christopher Kelly, and Terence Marshall (Hanover: Dartmouth University Press, 1992).

Music: Vintage Memories by Schematist | schematist.bandcamp.com