Rousseau

1789 - Father of French Revolution

Age
Father of popular sovereignty
Place France
 Reconciliation between Liberty and Authority
Concern  Possible under self-made laws

 Thinker of paradoxes
School of Thought  Followed by liberals & socialists; democrats and totalitarians

Man is born free but is everywhere in chains

 God has given worth to man, but society has put chains in the form of laws and customs
 Modernity has made us isolated
 Common property was converted into possessions of few
 Objective of Life - In order to be Happy ==>  Man should have freedom
 Freedom - When man acts according to his own will

Human Nature - Man is essentially good — Selfish and Sympathy

State of Nature — State of Bliss — gradually settled and development of reason — Mine and Thine Concept
Impact of reason

 Was noble savage

 Thinking man is a depraved animal

Contract in Rousseau — General will

 R’s Concept of Will

o Real will - original will - essentially good
o Actual will - polluted and shaped by the society - selfish will
 General will = Sum of Real wills of everybody = Social Contract —> Constitution of India
 Social contract is the General will of the people
 Direct participation of people.
 GW
o Indivisible
o Essentially good
o Popular Sovereignty — People are supreme
 Everybody should follow the General Will to be free — power to punish if does not follow
 Man should be forced to be free

Types of sovereigntiy

 Legal Sovereignty: Hobbes: Legally speaking State is sovereign

 o Law is command of the sovereign : Power to punish
 Political Sovereignty : Locke : Sovereignty exercised by the party which forms the govt
 Popular Sovereignty : Rousseau : Sovereignty with the people : Phil because it’s just an idea

See last 2 pages of mam notes.