Genevan philosopher (1712 to 1778) whose The Social Contract (Du Contrat Social, 1762) reconceives political legitimacy as arising from the general will of a self-governing people rather than from any prior natural right or divine sanction. His Discourse on Inequality (1755) traces the origins of social inequality to property, making him a formative and deeply contested figure for the French Revolution; Edmund Burke wrote Reflections on the Revolution in France largely against the political consequences drawn from Rousseau's thought.
Facts
Notable PublicationThe Social Contract (1762) 2 TraditionSocial contract theory; forerunner of Romanticism 2 Connections
Critiqued Here
Edmund Burke, Philosophers Burke's Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790) argues largely against the Rousseauian doctrine that legitimate political order can be built from abstract reason and a general will, rather than from inherited custom and prescription.
Source Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Associated With
Source Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Source Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Source Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Source Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
In Branch
Source Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Influenced
Diaw's doctoral work and political thought engaged Rousseau's theory of civil society and democracy.
Additional Source Aminata Diaw (Wikipedia)Aminata Diaw, Wikipedia, biography section
Works Attributed
Source Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
In the Other Atlases
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Jean-Jacques Rousseau
WikipediaLead, opening sentenceQuote, Lead, opening sentence
Jean-Jacques Rousseau (UK: , US: ; French: [ʒɑ̃ʒak ʁuso]; 28 June 1712-2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosophe, writer, and composer.
2. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Stanford University, Center for the Study of Language and Informationentry: Jean-Jacques Rousseau
The concern that dominates Rousseau’s work is to find a way of preserving human freedom in a world where people are increasingly dependent on one another to satisfy their needs.
- In Category: Philosophers
- In Branch: Political Philosophy
- Associated With: Edmund Burke, entry: Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Influence
- Associated With: Political Philosophy, entry: Rousseau's Political Philosophy
- Associated With: Social Contract Theory, entry: Rousseau's Political Philosophy
Associated With: Philosophy of Education, entry: Philosophy of Education
A notable feature of non-instrumentally justified formative education is that it seems to escape the dilemma, aptly framed by Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1762), of how it can be equally for the individual student and for the society.
View the Source Aminata Diaw (Wikipedia)
WikipediaInfluenced: Aminata Diaw, Aminata Diaw, Wikipedia, biography sectionQuote, Influenced: Aminata Diaw, Aminata Diaw, Wikipedia, biography section
Influenced by Jean-Jacques Rousseau and her academia background, she wrote about citizenship, civil society, democracy...
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.