The Social Contract


Lu par LibriVox Volunteers

(4.1 stars; 124 reviews)

The Social Contract outlines Rousseau's views on political justice, explaining how a just and legitimate state is to be founded, organized and administered. Rousseau sets forth, in his characteristically brazen and iconoclastic manner, the case for direct democracy, while simultaneously casting every other form of government as illegitimate and tantamount to slavery. Often hailed as a revolutionary document which sparked the French Revolution, The Social Contract serves both to inculcate dissatisfaction with actually-existing governments and to allow its readers to envision and desire a radically different form of political and social organization. (Summary by Eric Jonas) (4 hr 46 min)

Chapitres

1-01-Subject of the First Book 1:40 Lu par Diana Majlinger
1-02-Primitive Societies 4:33 Lu par Neeru Iyer
1-03-The Right of the Strongest 2:44 Lu par Neeru Iyer
1-04-Slavery 10:28 Lu par Rex Koontz
1-05-That it is always necessary to go back to a first convention 2:33 Lu par Justin Tovar
1-06-The Social Pact 5:23 Lu par Justin Tovar
1-07-The Sovereign 5:50 Lu par Christian Al-Kadi
1-08-The Civil State 3:15 Lu par Christian Al-Kadi
1-09-Real Property 7:36 Lu par Christian Al-Kadi
2-01-That Sovereignty is inalienable 3:08 Lu par Sienna
2-02-That Soverignty is indivisible 4:43 Lu par Sienna
2-03-Whether the General Will can ere 2:58 Lu par Sienna
2-04-The limits of the sovereign power 8:49 Lu par Sienna
2-05-The right of Life and Death 5:15 Lu par Availle
2-06-The Law 7:51 Lu par Patrick Wells
2-07-The Legislator 8:32 Lu par Anna Simon
2-08-The People 5:32 Lu par Ezwa
2-09-The People (continued) 6:11 Lu par Ezwa
2-10-The People (continued) 7:22 Lu par Ezwa
2-11-The Different Systems of legislation 4:09 Lu par Daniel Watkins
2-12-Division of the Laws 3:10 Lu par Daniel Watkins
3-01-Government in general 15:20 Lu par Christian Al-Kadi
3-02-The Principle which constitutes the different forms of Government 7:34 Lu par Christian Al-Kadi
3-03-Classification of Governments 3:22 Lu par Anna Simon
3-04-Democracy 4:48 Lu par Anna Simon
3-05-Arisctocracy 4:49 Lu par Anna Simon
3-06-Monarchy 12:43 Lu par Anna Simon
3-07-Mixed Governments 2:43 Lu par Sienna
3-08-That every form of government is not fit for every country 11:56 Lu par Sienna
3-09-The Marks of a good Government 2:54 Lu par Sienna
3-10-The Abuse of the Government and its tendency to degenerate 4:48 Lu par Sienna
3-11-The Dissolution of the Body Politic 3:06 Lu par Sienna
3-12-How the sovereign Authority is Maintained 2:26 Lu par Sibella Denton
3-13-How the sovereign Authority is Maintained (continued) 3:37 Lu par Sibella Denton
3-14-How the sovereign Authority is Maintained (continued) 2:00 Lu par Sibella Denton
3-15-Deputies or Representatives 7:36 Lu par Sibella Denton
3-16-That the Institution of the Government is not a contract 2:51 Lu par Sibella Denton
3-17-The Institution of the Government 2:44 Lu par Sibella Denton
3-18-Means of Preventing Usurpations of the Government 4:33 Lu par Sibella Denton
4-01-That the General Will is indestructible 4:54 Lu par Sibella Denton
4-02-Voting 6:20 Lu par Sibella Denton
4-03-Elections 4:31 Lu par Sibella Denton
4-04-The Roman Comitia 21:51 Lu par Rex Koontz
4-05-The Tribuneship 4:06 Lu par Daniel Watkins
4-06-The Dictatorship 6:06 Lu par Daniel Watkins
4-07-The Censorship 3:47 Lu par Daniel Watkins
4-08-Civil Religion 22:33 Lu par Rex Koontz
4-09-Conclusion 1:07 Lu par Daniel Watkins

Critiques

An intriguing argument and a decent recording


(5 stars)

I found Rousseau's argument quite compelling. I also found most readers familiar with the presentation style typical of this kind of work.

Amazing readers


(4.5 stars)

The readers were very easy to understand.


(1.5 stars)

Thick accent of the reader makes this difficult to follow

A follow up title on Thomas Hobbes’ ‘Leviathan’


(5 stars)

A really interesting read, innovatively read and recorded by several readers - a good contrast good for the ears. I enjoyed it, THANK YOU.

a great audiobook


(5 stars)

I found the numerable amount of readers to be refreshing and highlighting the different subjects one must see through to tackle Rousseau's ideas


(5 stars)

very informative, look at the political situation and signaling in the media today and most of the negative affects written of a declining state are manifest

Awful recording


(1 stars)

A lot ot dead air frustrating. I am hoping to find another version on librivox.org or elsewhere.

it's great


(5 stars)

always good to read in historical texts, the similarities of today, restores sanity into my life