1. The Social Contract Read the Fine Print!

2. Origins of an Idea Before the Enlightenment (1600s) there was no questioning of the way in which society was created. Elites were born that way Christian Church helped maintain this  Divine Rule, God’s Will People accepted the way things were because they regarded life / society as a test / punishment for our “sins” Starting in the 1500s thinkers began to challenge the status quo – using ancient Greek / Roman texts

3. Beginning of an Era At first people looked for ideas on the nature of the world around them Then they began to question the structures that “inhibited” them – Church (Martin Luther) By the 1600s, as society was in flux, some thinkers began to reflect on the type of society they lived in and how it was organised. Challenged the idea of divine rule by monarchs and elites Thomas Hobbes, John Locke

4. Thomas Hobbes (1588 - 1679) Nature was in its essence chaotic and supports oppression / exploitation. Natural selection occurs in nature and in society. The weak are overruled and exploited by the strongest. Society should be centralised and administered by a strong central authority (king). They serve all of society not just one segment. “Need a strong man to protect us from ourselves”

5. John Locke (1632 - 1704) He believed that society was not in danger as much as Hobbes believed. He agreed with Hobbes that there should be a centralised government – BUT... If that authority no longer served the will of the people – it lost its legitimacy and authority to make decisions Revolution, coup d’Etat, etc. Over the next century people took these ideas and applied them to their circumstances – American / French Revolution, Anarchism, Socialism, Communism

6. Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) He argued that social institutions had corrupted people and that human beings in the state of nature were more pure, free, and happy than in modern civilization. This line of thought provided a foundation for the growth of romanticism in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Rousseau's most important political work is The Social Contract (1762), in which he argued for popular sovereignty.

7. The first man who, having fenced in a piece of land, said "This is mine," and found people naïve enough to believe him, that man was the true founder of civil society. From how many crimes, wars, and murders, from how many horrors and misfortunes might not any one have saved mankind, by pulling up the stakes, or filling up the ditch, and crying to his fellows: Beware of listening to this impostor; you are undone if you once forget that the fruits of the earth belong to us all, and the earth itself to nobody. ” — Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Discourse on Inequality, 1754

8. Returning to SOC 12 Sociologists took these ideas applied them sociologically We use social contracts in many aspects of our lives. Take a minute and think of what forms of a “social Contract” you have unwittingly signed off on. They are kind of like codes of behaviours or role expectations in our society.

9. Types of Social Contracts student friend worker boyfriend / girlfriend / spouse

10. Limits and Powers of Social Contracts It must be understood that these agreements are not written It is Assumed you want to have the advantages and benefits of the contract if you attend or if you participate It is Assumed if you break contracts consequences are understood – even if they are not spelled out

11. Social contracts can be renegotiated Either through successful completion or through breaking the contract People can break the social contract with institutions but it is rare for institutions to break the social contract with the individual If a social contract is put in place, it is rigid – not flexible

12. Can society renegotiate the social contract? Gay Marriage Divorce Laws Capital Punishment Flex Time (Work from home) Casual Day at work Integrated sports (race and gender)

13. What happens when the social contract keeps getting broken? A new one will be negotiated for you with harsher and harsher conditions, none of which you have any control over. - Growth of prisons in US / Canada Alternative versions will be developed - Gated communities

14. The Social Contract Are there social contracts that just should not be kept? Can promises be too great? Not realistic? Funny Car Commercial Parody

15. Components of a social contract Advantages & Disadvantages: Immediate, good and bad components of the experience Short Term: Advantages and disadvantages Long Term: Benefits and Boundaries Benefits and Boundaries: Long term, promises or guarantees if you buy in or break

16. Deconstructing The Social Contract for education / SOC 12 AdvantagesDisadvantages BenefitsBoundaries

17. Deconstructing The Social Contract education / Sociology 12 Advantages Learning something Being with your peers Being with Welcher Being away from parents/Home Intelligent conversation Something to do Disadvantages Away from parents/Home  Note taking Immaturity Opportunity cost No snacks provided in class Picked on/harassed Reading – complicated or non-choice texts Homework Benefits Education Credit High School diploma Knowledge Help with employment Social savyness Learning how to deal with difficult people Boundaries Stressed relationships Other opinions Follow expectations – class, school, legal, interpersonal Participate Early mornings General class attendance

18. Examining the Social Contract Part time employment Pet / Parent “In a Relationship” Friend (Alternate – Facebook Friend) Music Fan Babysitter/caregiver (temporary)