Topic-Human Values – lessons from the lives and teachings of great leaders, reformers and administrators;
8) Discuss the contribution of Jean-Jacques Rousseau towards the field of philosophy.(250 words)
Directive word
Discuss- this is an all-encompassing directive which mandates us to write in detail about the key demand of the question. we also have to discuss about the related and important aspects of the question in order to bring out a complete picture of the issue in hand.
Key demand of the question.
The question wants us to write in detail about the philosophical works of Jean-Jacques Rousseau. We have to highlight some of the major works of Jean-Jacques Rousseau and bring out the dominant philosophy of those works.
Structure of the answer
Introduction– Write a few introductory lines about the Jean-Jacques Rousseau.E.g He was a French philosopher and writer of the Age of Enlightenment His Political Philosophy, particularly his formulation of social contract theory strongly influenced the French Revolution and the development of Liberal, Conservative and Socialist theory.
Body-
Discuss in detail about the works of Jean-Jacques Rousseau and the philosophy expounded by him in those works. E.g
- Rousseau saw a fundamental divide between society and human nature and believed that man was good when in the state of nature (the state of all other animals, and the condition humankind was in before the creation of civilization), but has been corrupted by the artificiality of society and the growth of social interdependence.
- “Discourse on Inequality” (1755) expanded on this theme and tracked the progress and degeneration of mankind from a primitive state of nature to modern society in more detail, starting from the earliest humans (solitary beings, differentiated from animals by their capacity for free will and their perfectibility, and possessed of a basic drive to care for themselves and a natural disposition to compassion or pity).
- Rousseau was one of the first modern writers to seriously attack the institution of private property, and therefore is considered to some extent a forebear of modern Socialism, Marxism and Anarchism. He also questioned the assumption that the will of the majority is always correct, arguing that the goal of government should be to secure freedom, equality and justice for all within the state, regardless of the will of the majority.
- Rousseau set out his influential views on Philosophy of Education in his semi-fictitious “Émile” (1762). The aim of education, he argued, is to learn how to live righteously, and this should be accomplished by following a guardian (preferably in the countryside, away from the bad habits of the city) who can guide his pupil through various contrived learning experiences. He minimized the importance of book learning and placed a special emphasis on learning by experience, and he recommended that a child’s emotions should be educated before his reason.
Conclusion– based on your discussion, form a fair and a balanced conclusion on the given issue.
