Category Archives: Society and the Social Contract

Against the Social Contract

Posted on May 29, 2010 by

It’s typically thought that a contract agreed to under duress is void. Philosophers who have seen the basis of political obligations as something like a contract, therefore, have had to suppose, explicitly or implicitly, that people are not ‘under duress’ … Continue reading →

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Decency, Nakedness, and the Social Contract

Posted on May 28, 2010 by

What is it to see a body? What mental structures are involved in seeing a physical object as the body of a person? I think there are two, potentially opposed, aspects to this. On the one hand, the other’s body … Continue reading →

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The Liar Paradox, the Prisoner’s Dilemma, and the Concept of Political Authority

Posted on May 24, 2010 by

Most students of philosophy will be familiar with ‘the liar paradox‘, which in its simplest form goes: “this sentence is false”. Other versions might include someone who always lies saying “I am currently lying”, or similar. Is the sentence false? … Continue reading →

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Messy Social Contracts

Posted on May 21, 2010 by

I’m quite interested in social contract theory, and a ‘contract’ is something like ‘an exchange of promises’. This gives me an interest in promises and the sort of obligations that they give rise to. Here I just want to run … Continue reading →

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Social Contracts, Civilisation, and Rioting: the concept of ‘order’

Posted on May 17, 2010 by

I’m watching the situation in Thailand with ongoing anxiety. I may post something more focused on it in the coming days. But for now I want to ask a philosophical question that it raises. What is ‘order’? On the one … Continue reading →

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