Compassion in the Political Thought of Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Hannah Arendt’s Critique

Abstract

This article examines Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s reflections on the concept of compassion, as well as Hannah Arendt’s critique of this notion in the context of the French Revolution. In order to review the concept, it is necessary to define terms such as human condition and human nature, while also describing how political communities developed according to the writings of both authors.