# Exegesis 2

## October 14th, 2020

-   So, this is basically just a chance to review and ask questions about Rousseau before the exegesis assignment (which'll be the same format as last time: you'll get a brief ~1 paragraph passage from the book, and then you'll have to explain vocab terms, what it means, how it fits into Rousseau's overall argument, and how it connects to our modern political world)
    -   Again, keep the focus on the passage itself; copying the passage to the top of your page wouldn't be a bad idea
        -   "Almost a spoiler: I'm going to pick a passage where Rousseau uses certain key terms in ways different from our normal English usage"
    -   The goal of this is again to UNDERSTAND Rousseau, not to agree or disagree with him; try to keep your personal judgement of Rousseau out of it
        -   After all, how do you know if you really agree with him until you're sure you understand him?
    -   Vocab-wise, Rousseau is more consistent and rigorous with how he uses terms than Locke - DON'T use dictionary definitions, because Rousseau uses words like "government," "Sovereign," "Prince," etc. in very specific, technical ways (and he usually defines them explicitly at some point)
        -   "When I took Modern Philosophy as an undergrad, my professor said it was the story of 5 great philosophers and 1 popular writer named Locke"
        -   At the same time, there is stuff here that Rousseau assumes and doesn't state as explicitly as Locke (although he does defend some of them elsewhere in other works)

-   Again, the assignment opens at noon today and then closes at midnight on Friday
    -   Next week, we'll start reading Iris Young's "Inclusion and Democracy", which is VERY clearly a 20th-century work of philosophy in its style (it's more a series of essays than a single treatise)

-   Last-minute questions about Rousseau:
    -   "Prince" means like "principal" - it's the overall body of magistrates, the executive authority of the government
        -   It's like the "Sovereign," but JUST for within the smaller government (rather than the whole people)
        -   Remember, they can enforce the laws but NOT make new laws (that's the sole responsibility of the sovereign people)
    -   Rousseau's whole math tangent in Book III is just talking about proportionality, saying that larger countries should actually have smaller governments (proportionally) so that it doesn't become unwieldy and impossible to manage
    -   "Lawgiver," again, is NOT a person who's legislating, but the person who sets up the initial structure of the government
    -   Rousseau's a little vague on how public discourse and deliberation actually takes place, but he'd say that things that should be laws should pass with little opposition in a well-made republic

-   Alright, the prompt'll be up at noon and you'll have 60 hours to post your response - good luck!