Social contract

According to the classic texts of the European Enlightenment, the S.C., that is, the pact among citizens, is the only legitimate source of law, power and the State. The democratic system starts from the conception of the S.C., according to which citizens’ rights imply symmetrical civil responsibilities. This concept considers the political system to be a certain balance of powers. An idea concerning the emergence of the State on the basis of a conscious contract among human beings, as opposed to the period of anarchy and barbarism, of the “war of all against all.” According to this conception, human beings consciously and willingly accepted restraints on their freedom in favor of the State as guarantor of personal security and public order. This idea was developed more thoroughly by the philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778), who concluded that the S.C. would be able to protect the rights of all. The S.C. is also conceived as a form of understanding between different social classes, and cooperation between the citizens and the State, with the objective of avoiding strikes, civil wars and other forms of violent conflict.