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The Rise and Cost of Luxury

The Social Contract

This flow traces luxury from a mark of refinement into a force that, in Rousseau’s critique, weakens virtue, civic independence, and the State.

increasingupBearing stren­gth in each eventdowndecreasing
Ornament Enters Public LifeOrnament Enters Public Life from "The Social Contract". Ornament Enters Public Life A Polished Surface Rousseau depicts the arts and sciences as adorning the chains of political dependence.
Ornament Enters Public Life A Polished Surface Rousseau depicts the arts and sciences as adorning the chains of political dependence. Refinement makes constrained lives appear attractive. The Critique Begins The point is not simply that people enjoy beautiful things. It is that cultural prestige can distract them from lost freedom and weakened virtue.
Luxury Reshapes MannersLuxury Reshapes Manners from "The Social Contract". Luxury Reshapes Manners Conformity and Display Fashion and polite behavior encourage people to present a common surface rather than reveal their actual…
Luxury Reshapes Manners Conformity and Display Fashion and polite behavior encourage people to present a common surface rather than reveal their actual character. Social approval becomes a governing pressure. Trust Diminished Rousseau links this performance to suspicion and fraud. What looks like civility can undermine the candid relations needed for public life.
Wealth Turns into StatusWealth Turns into Status from "The Social Contract". Wealth Turns into Status A New Measure Rousseau criticizes a society that measures people by wealth and consumption rather than virtue or public service.
Wealth Turns into Status A New Measure Rousseau criticizes a society that measures people by wealth and consumption rather than virtue or public service. Economic success becomes a substitute for civic worth. Unequal Dependence Luxury can enlarge the distance between those who command resources and those who serve them. The danger is a social order built on dependence.
Civic Energy DeclinesCivic Energy Declines from "The Social Contract". Civic Energy Declines Comfort Against Duty Rousseau argues that habits of comfort can weaken courage and public commitment.
Civic Energy Declines Comfort Against Duty Rousseau argues that habits of comfort can weaken courage and public commitment. He contrasts cultural polish with the demanding practices of civic life. A Contested Historical Claim His examples are polemical, but they sharpen his concern that private consumption can displace public responsibility.
Legislation Counters ExcessLegislation Counters Excess from "The Social Contract". Legislation Counters Excess Equality as a Legislative Aim The mature political argument seeks to prevent the wealth extremes that make citizens dependent.
Legislation Counters Excess Equality as a Legislative Aim The mature political argument seeks to prevent the wealth extremes that make citizens dependent. Law should resist luxury’s social consequences rather than merely condemn taste. A Constructive Turn The critique of refinement develops into proposals about equality and public policy. Rousseau’s concern shifts from denouncing luxury to limiting its political power.
1750, in the first Discourse’s account of civilization
1750, in the Discourse’s account of modern social conduct
1750, in the critique of luxury and political wealth
1750, as the Discourse compares refined societies with austere republics
Book II, Chapter XI, in the account of good systems of legislation