Jean-Jacques Rousseau
#145,157 Most Popular
About
One of the most influential Enlightenment philosophers. He created the idea of a social contract between individuals and the state.
Before Fame
He had to fake an interest in Catholicism to gain employment because he had little formal education.
Trivia
His master work was The Social Contract in which he created the French rallying cry of "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity," but his ideas were later adapted by totalitarian states to justify their existence.
Family Life
His mother, Suzanne Bernard Rousseau, raised him in a Genevan upper class society.
Associated With
He influenced both Immanuel Kant in his thoughts about moral law and Karl Marx in his political theories.
