Montesquieu and Rousseau (Collected Works of Durkheim, Volume 5)

Author: (French) Durkheim
Publisher:
Publication Date: 2006-08-01
Features: This volume is the fifth in the Collected Works of Durkheim, focusing on political philosophy. The first document is Montesquieu and Rousseau, which consists of two parts: Montesquieu's Contribution to the Rise of Social Science and Rousseau's The Social Contract. In these two documents, Durkheim's arguments attempt to suggest that the origins of sociology should be traced back to Montesquieu and Rousseau's theories on "law." The second document, Socialism and Saint-Simon, is compiled from Durkheim's lecture notes, with the central thesis being the fundamental differences between socialism and communism. These differences lead to the profound distinctions between the two in terms of their origins, forms, social construction, and direction. This volume is indispensable for studying Durkheim's political philosophy. It provides a more comprehensive and thorough understanding of Durkheim's thought by examining his interpretations of Rousseau and Montesquieu's ideas and his critique of the theoretical foundations of socialism. Moreover, the translation quality of this volume is very high. The theme of this volume is political philosophy, and it includes three parts of content. The first document is Montesquieu and Rousseau; the second document is compiled from Durkheim's lecture notes specifically on socialist issues, titled Socialism and Saint-Simon; in the final part, selected book reviews, notes, essays, and discussions by Durkheim on political theory and political issues are included.