NOCTUA
La tradizione filosofica dall’antico al moderno
History of Philosophy from the Ancient to the Modern Age
Autore / Author: Johanna Lenne-Cornuez
Affiliazione / Author affiliation: Université Jean Moulin Lyon 3
Titolo / Title: La pitié est-elle méprisante ? Réflexions sur les métamorphoses de la notion de pitié (de Rousseau à Wollstonecraft)
Abstract: Drawing on an analysis of the semantic ambiguities of pity and the pitiful, this paper seeks to highlight the tensions inherent in the concept as it appears in Rousseau’s work. The sentiment that inclines one to assist the destitute, akin to the Christian virtue of charity, cannot easily be transposed into terms of obligation. Furthermore, active beneficence presupposes the power of the helper and is therefore incompatible with the equality of beings that compassionate identification expresses. Finally, when pity takes the form of distributive justice, it distinguishes among those to whom it is addressed according to ambivalent criteria. The hypothesis is thus advanced of a rupture with the logic of pity in favour of equality of rights. Following Wollstonecraft (and opposing Rousseau), such a rupture with respect to women’s rights entails a critique of the contempt inherent in pity, as well as an adherence to an ideal of independence which is not without its own difficulties.
Keywords: pity; contempt; equality; justice; women; Jean-Jacques Rousseau; Mary Wollstonecraft.
English title: Is Pity Contemptuous? Reflections on the Evolution of the Concept of Pity (From Rousseau to Wollstonecraft)
DOI: 10.14640/NoctuaXII15
Rivista / Journal: Noctua
ISSN: 2284-1180
Anno / Volume: XII
Fascicolo / Issue: 3
Pagine / Pages: 520-543
Ricevuto / Submitted: 26/03/2025
Accettato / Accepted: 19/06/2025
Pubblicato / Published: 05/12/2025
Permalink: https://dx.doi.org/10.14640/NoctuaXII15
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ISSN 2284-1180