Theater of lies: The letter to D'Alembert and the tragedy of self‐deception

Abstract

Though Rousseau is recognized to have treated the problem of self‐knowledge with great sensitivity, very little is known about a centrally important aspect of that treatment—his understanding of self‐deception. I reconstruct this conception, emphasizing the importance of purposive but sub‐intentional processes that work to enhance agents' self‐esteem. I go on to argue that Rousseau's fundamental concern about the theater is its capacity to manipulate these processes in ways that make spectators both complicit in their own falsification and vulnerable to elite domination. This argument, with its focus on the pervasive and often subconscious character of self‐deception, not only problematizes an influential reading of Rousseau which emphasizes the epistemic availability of the “true” or “sincere” self, but also highlights the ongoing civic and moral threat posed by self‐deceptive mental states.