Criticism Of "Abstract Freedom" And Exploration Of "Concrete Freedom"

The ideological relationship between Marx and Rousseau’s view of freedom is an important theoretical topic in the academic circle to understand Marx’s view of freedom.Berki once noted that "the Rousseauism critique of culture and civilization--to some extent a profound internal self-criticism of modernity--is undoubtedly a major source of Marxism." The special status of Rousseau’s view of freedom lies in that he created his own critical system of modernity and initiated the pursuit and exploration of "concrete freedom".His view of freedom contains criticism and correction of the predicament of modernity in the western modern abstract view of freedom,which is of great significance to the formation of Marx’s view of freedom later.Rousseau’s criticism of "abstract freedom" has become the internal combination point between Rousseau and Marx’s view of freedom.By reflecting on "abstract freedom",they create two different paths to pursue "concrete freedom".Therefore,the research on the connection of Rousseau’s and Marx’s thoughts is an important coincidence point,which lies in their common criticism of "abstract freedom" and pursuit of "concrete freedom".First of all,this paper makes a special discussion on the basic viewpoints of the western modern view of freedom represented by Hobbes,Locke and Montesquieu,studies the connotation and ideological viewpoints of their view of freedom,and analyzes the abstract nature of their view of freedom.With this as the background,this paper discusses Rousseau’s criticism of modern abstract freedom,analyzes concretely the major theoretical differences between Rousseau and this modern abstract freedom,and then discusses the basic theoretical orientation of Rousseau’s attempt to transcend this abstract freedom and establish a concrete freedom.Secondly,on the basis of the foregoing,this paper discusses the influence of Rousseau’s view of freedom on Marx’s view of freedom,and Marx’s dialectical attitude towards Rousseau’s view of freedom.In the works of Marx and Engels,Rousseau’s view of freedom has been discussed for many times.Rousseau’s view of freedom has exerted an important influence on Marx in three aspects: its connotation,its foundation and its way of realization.Marx affirmed Rousseau’s criticism of modernity,his criticism of private ownership and his reflection on the relationship between the individual and the community,and criticized Rousseau’s shortcomings in abstracting the subject of freedom,his reflection on alienation and the way to realize the ideal of freedom.Finally,the article focuses on the sublation and reconstruction of Marx’s view of freedom to Rousseau’s view of freedom,and discusses the ideological relationship between Marx’s view of freedom and Rousseau’s view of freedom,which is both critical and transcendental.On the one hand,in the aspect of surpassing abstract freedom and exploring concrete freedom,it constitutes the common pursuit of Marx and Rousseau’s view of freedom.On the other hand,Marx has a fundamental difference with Rousseau in the important practical issues such as the understanding of the subject of freedom,the source of unfreedom,and the realistic way of freedom.Through this discussion,it is revealed that Marx’s view of freedom overcomes the theoretical deficiency of Rousseau’s view of freedom,and then forms a realistic view of freedom that is consistent with the real human being and the historical development.