Jean-Jacques Rousseau's Political Philosophy

Jean-Jacques Rousseau was an important force in the philosophical thought of the eighteenth century. He was an especially powerful influence in the development of educational theory and was one of the primary sources for the political theory that would infuse the age of revolution, notably the American and French Revolutions. After Rousseau and writers such as John Locke, David Hume, and Thomas Hobbes, the sovereign was no longer seen as ruling by divine right. He or she did have to answer to the people, and both the people and the sovereign had to behave in accordance with the law. That law would then be the touchstone for the sovereign to determine how to govern. These are standing laws--they are not developed at the whim of the sovereign to cope with each situation that arises. They are also to be "known to the people," which means that they are not to be secret and are instead to be known so the people can determine whether the sovereign is living up to these laws or not. The sovereign hereafter serves at their sufferance. The American Revolution was a response to excessive control from a distant sovereign. The French Revolution was effected when a people reached the end of their sufferance of a monarchy and aristocracy seen as corrupt and self-serving rather than as serving the needs of the people. The political philosophy of Rousseau was an important element in French revolutionary thought. It seems to have been much less important in the Ameri

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the formation and influence of groups within society. For Rousseau, the social contract created an environment in which the general will of the people, a unifying force, would dominate individuals and their particular wills. Rousseau considered man in nature to be the "noble savage," an entity that was essentially good, but he also sees that man in society is not free and has not protected himself from tyrannical government. He sees this as a consequence of the failure of people to participate fully in their own governance. Such participation is implied in the individual's place in the general will, but Rousseau is rather vague about the meaning of the general will. He says that the individual may have a particular will that differs from the general will, which can mean that the individual will want things for himself that are not in keeping with the common interest that derives from the general will. Rousseau equates freedom with conformity to the general will, and forcing the individual to conform to the general will means forcing the individual to be free. Rousseau also sees the social contract as involving a trade-off that benefits the individual. He says that the individual gives up certain things when agreeing to the

Category: Government - J