Jean–Jacques+Rousseau

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Jean-Jacques Rousseau was born on June 28, 1712 in Geneva, Switzerland. His mother died shortly after his birth. When Rousseau was 10 his father fled from Geneva to avoid imprisonment for a minor offense, leaving young Jean-Jacques to be raised by an aunt and uncle. Rousseau left Geneva at 16, wandering from place to place, finally moving to Paris in 1742. He earned his living during this period, working as everything from footman to assistant to an ambassador.(Chew, 1996)

Rousseau's insight was seen as complicated and ambiguous.

In his early writing, Rousseau contended that man is essentially good, a "noble savage" when in the "state of nature" and that good people are made unhappy and corrupted by their experiences in society. (Chew, 1996)

Rousseau was one of the first modern writers to seriously attack the institution of private property, and therefore is considered a forebear of modern socialism and Communism. (Chew, 1996)

One of the primary principles of Rousseau's political philosophy is that politics and morality should not be separated. When a state fails to act in a moral [|fashion], it ceases to function in the proper manner and ceases to exert genuine authority over the individual. The second important principle is freedom, which the state is created to preserve. (Chew, 1996)

His first major philosophical work, //A Discourse on the Sciences and Arts//, was the winning response to an essay contest conducted by the Academy of Dijon in 1750. In this work, Rousseau argues that the progression of the sciences and arts has caused the corruption of virtue and morality. This discourse won Rousseau fame and recognition, and it laid much of the philosophical groundwork for a second, longer work, //The Discourse on the Origin of Inequality//.(Delaney, 2006)

Praise of nature continues in later works,such as the //Emile//, and his major work on political philosophy, //The Social Contract//: both published in 1762. These works were immediately banned by Paris authorities. Rousseau fled France and settled in Switzerland, but he continued to find difficulties with authorities and quarrel with friends. The end of Rousseau’s life was marked in large part by his growing paranoia and his continued attempts to justify his life and his work. This is especially evident in his later books, //The Confessions//, //The Reveries of the Solitary Walker//, and //Rousseau: Judge of Jean-Jacques//. (Delaney, 2006)

Parents: Isaac Rousseau and Suzanne Bernard

Here he met Louise de Warens, who was instrumental in his conversion to Catholicism, which forced him to forfeit his Genevan citizenship (in 1754 he would make a return to Geneva and publicly convert back to Calvanism). Rousseau’s relationship to Mme. de Warens lasted for several years and eventually became romantic. During this time he earned money through secretarial, teaching, and musical jobs. (Delaney, 2006) In 1742 Rousseau went to Paris to become a musician and composer. After two years spent serving a post at the French Embassy in Venice, he returned in 1745 and met a linen-maid named Therese Levasseur, who would become his lifelong companion (they eventually married in 1768). They had five children together, all of whom were left at the Paris orphanage. It was also during this time that Rousseau became friendly with the philosophers Condillac and Diderot. He worked on several articles on music for Diderot and d’Alembert’s //Encyclopedie//. (Delaney, 2006)

//Decipimur specie recti -// "//We are deceived by the appearance of right//." (Rousseau)

"I have studied mankind and know my heart; I am not made like any one I have been acquainted with, perhaps like no one in existence; if not better, I at least claim originality, and whether Nature has acted rightly or wrongly in destroying the mold in which she cast me, can only be decided after I have been read." (Rousseau, 1712) "I will present myself, whenever the last trumpet shall sound, before the Sovereign Judge with this book in my hand, and loudly proclaim, "Thus have I acted; these were my thoughts; such was I. With equal freedom and veracity have I related what was laudable or wicked, I have concealed no crimes, added no virtues; and if I have sometimes introduced superfluous ornament, it was merely to occupy a void occasioned by defect of memory: I may have supposed that certain, which I only knew to be probable, but have never asserted as truth, a conscious falsehood. Such as I was, I have declared myself; sometimes vile and despicable, at others, virtuous, generous, and sublime; even as Thou hast read my inmost soul: Power Eternal! assemble round Thy throne an innumerable throng of my fellow-mortals, let them listen to my confessions, let them blush at my depravity, let them tremble at my sufferings; let each in his turn expose with equal sincerity the failings, the wanderings of his heart, and if he dare, aver, I was better than that man." (Rousseau, 1712) "I was born at Geneva, in 1712, son of Isaac Rousseau and Susannah Bernard, citizens. My father's share of a moderate competency, which was divided among fifteen children, being very trivial, his business of a watchmaker (in which he had the reputation of great ingenuity) was his only dependence. My mother's circumstances were more affluent; she was daughter of a Mons. Bernard, minister, and possessed a considerable share of modesty and beauty; indeed, my father found some difficulty in obtaining her hand." (Rousseau, 1712)

The Confessions, by Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Retrieved October 1, 2008, from Ebooks Web site: http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/r/rousseau/jean_jacques/r864c/book1.html

Chew, Robin (1996, June). Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Retrieved September 30, 2008, from Jean-Jacques Rousseau - Philosopher Web site: http://www.lucidcafe.com/library/96jun/rousseau.html

Delaney, James (2006). Jean-Jacques Rousseau. In //The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy// [Web]. Retrieved September 30, 2008, from http://www.iep.utm.edu/r/rousseau.htm

Script:

Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who was considered to be one of the most enlightened thinkers of the 18th century, was born in Geneva on June 28th, 1712 to Isaac Rousseau and Suzanne Bernard. What we could consider enlighted, however, is most likely far different from what Jean-Jacques Rousseau intended to be. His primary study, and what he is most famous for, is Philosophy. If you were to translate Philosophy from English to Latin, it would consist of two parts "philia" and "sophia" which literally means "love of wisdom." Rousseau wrote many controversial works, such as The Discourse on the Arts and Sciences, The Confessions, and many such works.. The Discourse on the Arts and Sciences was considered to be the bane of society as it stated Rousseau's idea that "the progression of the sciences and arts has caused the corruption of virtue and morality." Though he was not the most influential person of this era, his works still inspire many to this day.

A line that he uses in his writing "The Confessions" is //decipimur specie vecti// which means "we are deceived by the appearance of right." By saying this Rousseau showed that he did not believe in the systems that had been put in place during his life. To be specific, though everyone followed the same standards, and in turn, lived roughly similar lives Rousseau believed that this was not the correct way of doing things. Rousseau made himself known for his praise of nature in his works. This praise remained apparent throughout all of his works including his political philosophy discourses.

This is how Rousseau's life progressed, he worked diligently. Rousseau attempted to change the world, little did he know that his work would survive until this day. His work was so inspirational that he attracted such company as Condillac and Diderot. Diderot was known for his music and enlisted Rousseau's help in writing his book the //Encyclopedie//. However, there was a woman, Louise de Warrens, that he met during his life. De Warrens was instrumental in Rousseau's conversion to Catholicism but she also became romantically involved with Rousseau. At this point in his life Rousseau had to revoke his citizenship in Geneva only to return and convert back to Calvanism to reattain it.

Rousseau could not have ventured to guess that even today his work would inspire the minds of many. His life work, philosophy is an active enterprise, which, little do many know, is used in every conversation held and every argument used. This diligent study led him to be one of the most enlightened people of his era.