The Politics of Amour Propre: Constructing the International

The Second Discourse is essential for readers seeking to imitate Emile’s study of international politics. Here, Rousseau identifies amour propre as the primary motive of political engagement. Within the individual, amour propre produces necessary social attachments, but it also yields unhealthy vices like greed and a desire for status over others. States develop a similar form of amour propre which produces vices on a larger scale: unrelenting competition and war. While healthy political institutions can mitigate these vices, they cannot eliminate them from the political experience. As we see in the opening illustrations, the “Allegory of Liberty” and “He returns to live among his equals,” the tools of oppression and subjugation inform the way human beings understand and pursue political freedom. By critically deconstructing amour propre, the Second Discourse reveals the performative attributes of politics and gestures toward healthier ways to understand oneself in relation to others. This account of power and the performance of political identity resonates with constructivist and postcolonial approaches to international relations.