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How Did Rousseau Wrote The Social Contract

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Jean Jacques Rousseau wrote the social contract in 1763, making this document a primary source however it was translated by Henry Myers so it would be considered a primary source with some secondary knowledge. This document along with Rousseau himself and John Locke played a big part in the enlightenment. Jean Jacques Rousseau built his ideas for The Social Contract off of John Locke’s ideas of a social contract being the basis of a society. In The Social Contract Rousseau keeps coming back to one major theme, the general will. He expresses throughout the document that “the first and most important conclusion from the principles we have established thus far is that the general will alone may direct the forces of the State to achieve the goal
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In any case of failure to protect the rights, the people were in their complete right to overthrow the government (Doc 2 & Pg. 630) In agreement, Rousseau believed that the government’s power also comes from the consent of the people, which he included in his book, The Social Contract. (Pg. 632) Rousseau included much more ideas that incorporated political aspects, but he also his thought about

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Rousseau’s beliefs coincided with the beliefs of other Enlightenment thinkers. This is shown when he writes, “Duty and interest thus equally require the two contracting parties [the people and the government] to aid each other mutually” (Document 3). In that period of history, it was typical for people to be ruled by a monarch and they had very little say, if any, in the laws and policies that impacted their day to day life. Rousseau felt that the system was outdated and it made citizens feel as if they were living in someone else’s home rather than their own, so he theorized that by fabricating a system in which the government and the people are forced to work together, it creates a sense of unity and equality. This works because “ … an offense against one of its members is an offense against the body politic.

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812 Words | 4 Pages

Rousseau’s beliefs coincided with the beliefs of other Enlightenment thinkers. This is shown when he writes, “Duty and interest thus equally require the two contracting parties [the people and the government] to aid each other mutually” (Document 3). In that period of history, it was typical for people to be ruled by a monarch and they had very little say, if any, in the laws and policies that impacted their day to day life. Rousseau felt that the system was outdated and it made citizens feel as if they were living in someone else’s home rather than their own, so he theorized that by fabricating a system in which the government and the people are forced to work together, it creates a sense of unity and equality. This works because “ … an offense against one of its members is an offense against the body politic.

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1229 Words | 5 Pages

Locke wanted to establish an agreement between the government and the people that stated the government would protect the natural rights and if they tried to take them away, the people had the right to overthrow the government. This created a bond between the government and the people by having the government protect the people, but in order for the government not to have absolute power, the people could refuse their laws. Other philosophers also believed in social contracts, however they had different motives behind them. Jean Jacques Rousseau, a Swiss philosopher who was committed to individual freedom, also supported the idea of a social contract. He believed that though men were free, they should be willing to give up some freedoms to better society.

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He based his beliefs off of the ideas that all men are created good-natured, but society corrupts them. Unlike some other French Enlightenment thinkers, Rousseau believed that the Social contract was not a willing agreement. He also said that no man should be forced to give up their natural rights to a ruler. He came up with the solution that people should “give up” their natural rights to the community for the public’s good. He believed in a democratic government.

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e The Social Contract. A Document as influential as the Social Contract is not only found in just the Declaration of Independence, another place is the Declaration of the Rights of Man. inspiration, but did the French Declaration use the Declaration of Independence for some inspiration? It came 13 years before and there is some very good evidence that it was used.

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It derived many of its ideas from Rousseau’s “The Social

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In response to the British’s intolerable acts during this time people desired a government based on popular sovereignty or the idea that a government's power ultimately comes from the consent of the people. The political treatise "The Social Contract," written by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, explores the idea that the people are sovereign and that the legal power of a state arises from the agreement of the governed in order to build a more stable and just society. In this work, Rousseau makes the case that the common good should serve as any society's guiding concept and that the government should be in charge of advancing

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Terrance Kodger Kodger 1 History 102 Kevin Grubbs 22 March 2018 The Social Contract The Social Contract was a book which was written by Jean- Jacques Rosseau in 1762 in the mist of a monarchial French government. In this book Rosseau discusses his theories on how to establish a political community in the face of a broken commercial society. The main political objective discussed in this book was getting rid of the monarchy which was in power and give more political power to the people. Although many people did support Rosseau certain individuals such as Adam Smith felt that the commercial society they already lived on was the best thing

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In any other system, the people give up their freedom without any reason; it should be created only if all agree to it. The social contract would exist for the purpose of self-preservation, pushing the common will of the Sovereign. To convince his audience of these complex ideas, Rousseau must stay organized and be intentional in his rhetorical

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Because the sovereign is a distinct and unified whole, Rousseau treats it in many respects as if it were an individual. Since no individual can be bound by a contract made with himself, the social contract cannot impose any binding regulations on the sovereign. By contrast, subjects of the sovereign are doubly bound: as individuals they are bound to the sovereign, and as members of the sovereign they are bound to other individuals. Though the sovereign is not bound by the social contract, it cannot do anything that would violate the social contract since it owes its existence to that contract. Further, in hurting its subjects it would be hurting itself, so the sovereign will act in the best interests of its subjects without any binding commitment

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However, by doing so, we retain our individuality and freedom. In chapter 6, of the social contract Rousseau argues that people need to give up their individual freedom and unite for the common good of all in order to overcome the natural threats to their own existence. It is their own existence that motivates them to give up their individual freedom and unite. The problem with the social contract lies in the opposing forces of individual freedom versus the sovereign that was formed when they united.

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The questions of the whether social inequality is justified and the extent of government to address said inequality are some of the foundations upon which societies and economies are built. Two key philosophers on this issue – John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau – differ on this subject. In Two Treatises on Government, Locke holds that individuals have a right to property derived from their labor, citizens consent to the existence of inequality in society, and governments are instituted among men to protect said property. In contrast, Rousseau writes in Discourse on the Origin of Inequality and The Social Contract that inequality should be strictly limited and that governments have a duty to act in the best interest of its citizens by maintaining

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INTRODUCTION Jean Jacque Rousseau was born in the city state of Geneva, Switzerland in 1772. Rousseau is primarily known for major works like- The Social Contract, Emile, Discourse on the origin of Inequality, the Constitutional Project for Corsica, and Consideration on the Government of Poland. What makes Rousseau such an important figure in the history of philosophy is because of his contribution to both political and moral philosophies and his concept of ‘general will’, which also gained him a lot of criticism. Apart from his philosophical and political contribution, he was also a novelist, an autobiographer, botanist, composer and also a music theorist.

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A key political theorist influencing the initial outbreak of the French Revolution is Jean-Jacques Rousseau. The Social Contract, written by Rousseau, provided the rights the French people initially demanded. In the Social Contract, Rousseau delegitimizes absolute monarchies and popularizes rights of

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