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Rousseau's notion of envy: A comparison with modern economic theory

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  • Claire Pignol

Abstract

The concept of envy is present both in Rousseau's economic philosophy and in modern economic theory. This paper compares these different uses of the concept and studies the relevance of the definition of envy adopted on each side, taking into account what is at stake when a notion of envy is introduced. It will be shown that Rousseau's envy cannot be expressed by modern conceptions of envy. Nevertheless, it enlightens the debate between the two competing notions of envy present in modern economic theory, revealing that the existence of envy questions the notion of self-interest.

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  • Claire Pignol, 2012. "Rousseau's notion of envy: A comparison with modern economic theory," The European Journal of the History of Economic Thought, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(4), pages 529-549, June.
  • Handle: RePEc:taf:eujhet:v:19:y:2012:i:4:p:529-549
    DOI: 10.1080/09672567.2010.540340
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Varian, Hal R., 1974. "Equity, envy, and efficiency," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 9(1), pages 63-91, September.
    2. Marc FLEURBAEY, 1994. "L’absence d’envie dans une problématique “post-welfariste”," Discussion Papers (REL - Recherches Economiques de Louvain) 1994011, Université catholique de Louvain, Institut de Recherches Economiques et Sociales (IRES).
    3. Brennan, Geoffrey, 1973. "Pareto desirable redistribution: the case of malice and envy," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 2(2), pages 173-183, April.
    4. Feldman, Allan M & Kirman, Alan, 1974. "Fairness and Envy," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 64(6), pages 995-1005, December.
    5. Elisha A. Pazner & David Schmeidler, 1974. "A Difficulty in the Concept of Fairness," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 41(3), pages 441-443.
    6. Sussangkarn, Chal & Goldman, Steven M., 1983. "Dealing with envy," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 103-112, October.
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    Cited by:

    1. Nathalie Berta, 2016. "On the definition of externality as a missing market," Post-Print halshs-01277990, HAL.
    2. Nathalie Berta, 2016. "On the definition of externality as a missing market," Université Paris1 Panthéon-Sorbonne (Post-Print and Working Papers) halshs-01277990, HAL.
    3. Nathalie Berta, 2017. "On the definition of externality as a missing market," Post-Print hal-02095696, HAL.
    4. Nathalie Berta, 2016. "On the definition of externality as a missing market," Documents de travail du Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne 16007, Université Panthéon-Sorbonne (Paris 1), Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne.
    5. Jimena Hurtado, 2016. "On the Possibility of Justice in Commercial Society according to Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Adam Smith," Documentos CEDE 14633, Universidad de los Andes, Facultad de Economía, CEDE.
    6. José Francisco Bellod Redondo, 2016. "Reivindicación de Rousseau," Revista de Economía Institucional, Universidad Externado de Colombia - Facultad de Economía, vol. 18(34), pages 29-37, January-J.

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