Philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau: Modern Civilization (Essay Sample)

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Jean Jacques Rousseau
Jean Jacques Rousseau is one of philosophers one would not ignore because his ideas shaped a lot of the modern civilization known today. First, it is imperative to understand the background of Rousseau’s work and the ideas he propagated. Rousseau, an enlightenment philosopher, began his work in an essay contest that was carried out by the Academy of Dijon in 1750. He wrote an essay with the title A Discourse on the Sciences and Arts. In the essay, Rousseau contended that the advancement of the arts and sciences has a negative effect on virtue and morality. The essay propelled Rousseau to the ranks of philosophers that shaped the enlightenment period. Beyond his first work in the competition, Jean Jacques Rousseau identified himself as a philosopher concerned with virtue and morality and the future of humanity right from an individual level to the highest level of human association such as government institutions.
There are many quotes from Jean Jacques Rousseau that have influenced many scholars, but a few examples will get this discussion into perspective. They include:
“Man is born free and everywhere he is in chains” (Davis 797)
This quote is a reaction by Rousseau on the pervasive imperialism and autocracy that was characteristic of the 17th and 18th centuries. Repressive monarchies were common throughout Europe and that was the same period when Europeans established empires throughout Asia, Africa, and the Americas. It is worth to note that Rousseau was among philosophers that agitated for the comprehensive freedoms enjoyed by contemporary democracies. Jean Jacques Rousseau viewed human beings as free agents that are subject to their own instincts and they are also responsible for the society they deem fit for them and the future generations. Through Rousseau, the idea of democracy and relationship between government and the people was articulated and understood. In fact it would be plausible to state that the modern concept of a social contract between the people and the government coupled with other ideas such as the separation of powers between arms of government and the accountability of government officials and other public leaders are ideas that grew from the works of Jean Jacques Rousseau.
Jean Jacques Rousseau did a lot of work to contribute to the philosophical discourse, but the most notable works are his discourse and his propagation of the social contract theory. Other than the Discourses on the Sciences and Arts, Rousseau also wrote two major discourses. The second was the Discourse on the Origin of Inequality and the third was the Discourse on Political Economy (Friend, Celeste).
The works of Socrates, Hobbes and Locke that were in tandem with Rousseau’s philosophical views
Jean Jacques Rousseau is famous for his works that demystified the relationship between the government and the people. His views, however, are in tandem with other philosophers that also viewed the relationship between government and subjects as based on a social contract that is terminable in the event that it is grossly breached. Socrates had a huge influence on Rousseau through his submissions in Crito (famously referred to as the platonic dialogue). Socrates argued that he remains obliged to honor and abide by the laws of Athens because they had made it possible for him to live in the city just like his parents did. The laws of Athens during Socrates’ time compelled all fathers to take good care of children and take them to school. The laws, therefore, gave some guarantee of a good future for the children of Athens. Socrates used the premise of the government’s requirement of parental obligation to assert his position that he has a moral obligation to oblige to the penalties imposed on those who violated the law.
Through Socrates’ views, Rousseau was able craft the idea of social contract the same way other philosophers such as John Locke and Thomas Hobbes viewed the relationship between the government and the governed. They all contend that citizens in their individual capacities surrender some of their rights to a government that has the capability to protect their rights through laws that are recognized by all. It is the social contract between the citizens of Athens and its government that Socrates was able to earn his place in society and secure his future. As such, he was as obliged to honor the contract by obeying laws the same way the government is obliged to provide basic services to citizens.
Thomas Hobbes had similar philosophical views about the social contract. Hobbes existed during the time of the English Civil War (from 1642 to 1648). The conflict was between those who favored the hegemony of a monarchical government and those who favored a quasi-democratic institution through where the people are represented by members of parliament with the mandate to legislate rather than use the decrees of the throne as the legitimate law of the land. Hobbes viewed human beings as self-interested and rational, but they must have an arbiter that protects their collective interests. Hobbes writes,
‘Scouts, and Spies, to range abroad, and find the way to the things desired” (Ake 467).
In Hobbes view, human beings are rational, which is basically instrumental in the way they go about their individual and collective business. It is the self-interest and rationality that makes it almost inevitable for human beings to submit their individual authority to a political authority that protects their rights through law enforcement, which is the social contract that Jean Jacques Rousseau talks about in his philosophical perspectives. John Locke is also a significant philosopher that contributed to the theory of social contract. Locke approached the subject through the perspective of “the state of nature”. Locke viewed the state of nature as inherently hostile to human beings and the only way they escape it is through allowing an absolute authority to oversee the affairs of the society. Locke refers to a single authority of government as â...