What is a social contract in simple terms?

In simple terms, a social contract is an agreement by citizens on which rights they have and how they should be governed. Some rights may have to be given up or compromised so that all citizens are protected. For some philosophers, an important element of a social contract is that citizens give their consent to it and their government.

What is the function of the social contract idea?

The function of the social contract idea is to reflect on which rights citizens should have and which form of government best guarantees those rights. The theory can also inform when it is legitimate to replace a failing government.

Social Contract

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Definition

The social contract is an idea in philosophy that at some real or hypothetical point in the past, humans left the state of nature to join together and form societies by mutually agreeing which rights they would enjoy and how they would be governed. The social contract aims to improve the human condition by establishing an authority based on consent which protects certain rights and punishes those who infringe on the rights of others. Although some philosophers deny such an event has ever occurred, the idea was attractive to some thinkers, particularly during the Enlightenment, as a way to justify citizen participation and promote the advantages of one type of government over another.

More about: Social Contract

Timeline

1651
Thomas Hobbes publishes his Leviathan.
1689
John Locke publishes his Essay Concerning Human Understanding, Two Treatises on Government, and Letters on Toleration.
1762
Jean-Jacques Rousseau publishes The Social Contract.
1971
John Rawls publishes his Theory of Justice.