Biography of Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Biography of Jean-Jacques Rousseau MAN is born free; and everywhere he is in chains. One thinks himself

the master of

others, and still remains a greater slave then they. How did this

change come about?

I do not know. How can it be legitimate? That question I think I can

answer.

(Rousseau, Jean-Jacques 1997)

Jean- Jacques Rousseau was born on the 25th of June 1712 in Geneva,

Switzerland. He was reared by his aunt and uncle as his mother died

shortly after childbirth and his father abandoned him. At the age of

sixteen he left Geneva he travelled for fourteen years before settling

in Paris in 1742.

In 1751 Rousseau began his philosophical works with his essay on the

arts and sciences and went on to write other famous works such as the

Social Contract. Rousseau also made a text of his own life ‘his

confessions and Rousseau judge of Jean-Jacques are apologies for what

went wrong’ (McClelland, J.S 1996)

Rousseau’s philosophical thinking was somewhat complicated he tried to

grasp an emotional and passionate side of mankind. Rousseau’s

political philosophy had two important principals. The first and

foremost being that politics and morality should not be separated and

the second principal is freedom which the state should do it’s utmost

to preserve. Rousseau was a man of the people and his social and

political theory was written from the bottom up and not the top down.

In his works the Confessions Rousseau tells us what it is like to rise

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society. He teaches us that morality and reason are the basis for all

legitimate government. If a Government fails to respect the morality

and reason of the individuals it represents it fails to be legitimate

and therefore it fails to exist.

The constitution of man is the work of nature; that of the state the

work of art.

It is not in men’s power to prolong their own lives; but it is for

them to prolong

as much as possible the life of the state by giving it the best

possible constitution.

(Rousseau, Jean-Jacques 1997)

Bibliography

McCllelland, J.S, (1996). A History of Western Political Thought.

London: Routledge

Rousseau, Jean Jacques (1997), The social contract and other later

political writings. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

http://www.constitution.org/jjr/watkins.htm