Why is property a problem for Rousseau? Contrast his argument with Marx`s and assess the relative strengths and weaknesses of the two views.

In today 's society , property is something taken for granted . No one questions what property is the only consideration these days is limited to the acquisition , ownership , and dominion of property . Rousseau 's notion of property is quite different . For him , property is an evil thing or rather , property , and the desire for it , is what brought about the status of inequality in society . He claims that society will complete a circle of evolution in three stages wherein man will return to his original , savage nature , minus his purity , under the rule of

a despot , where he has nothing . For Marx , the abolition of private property and of the state will bring liberation to man and will make him more truly himself , through communism . Rousseau 's gradual evolution is a better view than Marx 's revolutionary upheaval , although the latter is already in practice in some states , because the idea of ownership is almost second nature in man

According to Rousseau (1754 , there are two forms of inequality in human kind , the first being natural or physical , and the second moral or political . He states that this second kind of inequality consists of different privileges which some men enjoy to the detriment of others like being richer , more honored , or more powerful . It is context in which he discusses the notion of property

For Rousseau , the problem with property is that , quoting Locke , it is the source of injury . Although he does not advocate the complete abolition of property , he believes that property is the cause of innumerable tragedies experienced by man , such as crime and war , and that mankind would have been spared from such evils if they kept in mind that the fruits of the earth are everyone 's property and that the land is no one 's property (Rousseau 1745 . He explains that as long as men are content with what they have , everything remains peaceful , and trouble begins when they begin wanting more . With the introduction of the notion of property , he claims that work became indispensable because man could only own the fruits of his labor . With this development came the principle of justice , in that in for man to be given what is his , he must have something to be given in the first place . However , because of natural or physical inequality , even men who worked equally hard did not achieve the same results . Physical inequality enriched some and disadvantaged other , causing a rift to fall between those physically , or mentally , blessed on those who can only hope to be as much . As the rift widened , the moral inequality blighted man 's existence . It occurred with such abundance that , soon , the ambition and greed made men turn to war and slavery

For Rousseau , property , or goods , is an alienable thing , unlike a person 's liberty , and property may be abused , while liberty should not He completes his discourse by saying that inequality as it exists was made possible because of the permanence and...