Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Genevan philosopher, writer and composer
Jean-Jacques Rousseau was an 18th-century Genevan philosopher, writer and composer. His book The Social Contract is a foundational work in modern political thought.
1 summary 18 min of listening
Born 1712 in Geneva Died 1778
Influenced by Thomas Hobbes, Aristotle
About Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Rousseau was born in Geneva on 28 June 1712 and died on 2 July 1778. He worked as a philosopher, writer and composer, and he also wrote on music and the theory of education. The Social Contract and Émile, or On Education both appeared in 1762. In The Social Contract he describes what makes a political order legitimate, and in Discourse on Inequality he argues that inequality springs from private property. His Confessions, published after his death, is credited with initiating modern autobiography. He was buried in the Panthéon in Paris in 1794 as a national hero.