A autonomia na obra Contrato Social de Rousseau

Abstract

The concept of autonomy, as self-legislation, was widely discussed during the Enlightenment and Modernity, especially by philosophers linked to ethics and political philosophy. Rousseau developed, in his political theory, an intrinsic relationship between autonomy and the full political participation of the citizen in the sovereign, that is, in the political body or in the group of people who, united in contract, form society. The objective of this article is to develop reflections about autonomy and its importance in the philosophical theory expressed in Rousseau's Social Contract. By analyzing the work, it is possible to affirm that autonomy generates implications in the social organization proposed by the thinker from Geneva. It can also be said that elements such as citizenship, civil education, equality, liberty, patriotism and the general will, which are fundamental concepts for the understanding of Rousseau's contractualism expressed in the Social Contract, have ramifications from the concept of autonomy and are therefore implications, that is, natural consequences of this basic concept. For this, the research is based on a literature review of published studies on the subject and the analysis of the work Social Contract. In summary, the article demonstrates how autonomy is fundamental in Rousseau's vision for the "health" of the political body and its own maintenance as a moral person, on the other hand, the lack of the same cause the death of the sovereign.