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Jean Jacques Rousseau

Swiss-French Philosopher and Political Theorist (1712-1778)

(Rousseau) …was one of the great figures of the French ENLIGHTENMENT and probably the most significant of those who shaped the 19th-century.

ROMANTICISM, influencing such figures as KANT, GOETHE, ROBESPIERRE, TOLSTOY, and the French revolutionists. Rousseau's most celebrated theory was that of the "natural man." In his Discourse on the Inequalities of Men (1754) and Social Contract (1762), he maintained that human beings were essentially good and equal in the state of nature, but were corrupted by the introduction of property, agriculture, science, and commerce. People entered into a SOCIAL CONTRACT among themselves, establishing governments and educational systems to correct the inequalities brought about by the rise of civilization. Emile (1762), a didactic novel, expounds Rousseau's theory that education is not the imparting of knowledge but the drawing out of what is already in the child. From the 1760s, Rousseau was tormented by persecution mania, and he lived his later years in seclusion. His Confessions (1781) created a new, intensely personal style of autobiography.

Rousseau was born in Geneva, Switzerland, on June 28, 1712. His mother died in childbirth, and he was raised as a Calvinist by an aunt. In 1762 he published his best-known and most-influential works, Emile, a treatise on education, and The Social Contract, a major work of political philosophy. He died on July 2, 1778, in Paris.

Philosophical Position: Rousseau must be understood in terms of his relationship to both the 18th-century enlightenment and to his influence on 19th-century romanticism. To begin with, he shared the Enlightenment view that society had perverted natural man, the "noble savage" who lived harmoniously with nature, free from selfishness, want, possessiveness, and jealousy. He argued that the restoration of the arts and sciences had not contributed to the purification of humankind but to its corruption. Rousseau also believed that social relationships of all kinds were based on an inequality that resulted from an unnatural distribution of power and wealth.

Major Works: Rousseau’s method is clearly visible in Emile, where the narrative of development and education is a vehicle for a theory of humans derived from reflection on moral intuitions. The most important of these intuitions is that humans are basically good and, if proper development is fostered, the natural goodness of the individual can be protected from the corrupting influences of society. The child Emile must therefore be raised in a rural rather than an urban environment, so that he may develop in continuity with nature rather than in opposition to it. The earliest impulses of the child are allowed to develop but are channeled into a genuine respect for persons, a respect growing out of self-love rather than pride. Brought into community by an instinctual pity, or sympathy for those around him, Emile develops a moral sense, and an urge toward perfection and inner growth allows him to rise above the passions and achieve virtue. Interestingly, the only book allowed Emile in his education is Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe, which in itself displays the way in which character matures in harmony with nature if natural ingenuity is allowed to work unhindered by the corruptions of society. Nevertheless, society must be dealt with, and this Rousseau does in his most influential work, The Social Contract. The individual, progressing in the development of a moral sense, can, for Rousseau, find genuine happiness and fulfillment only in a social situation. Thus one of the first principles of Rousseau’s political philosophy is that politics and morality never be separated. The second important principle is freedom, which the state is created to preserve. The state is a unity and as such expresses the general will. This is contrasted to the will of all, which is merely the aggregate will, the accidentally mutual desires of the majority. John Locke and others had assumed that what the majority wants must be correct. Rousseau questioned this assumption, arguing that the individuals who make up the majority may, in fact, wish something that is contrary to the goals or needs of the state, to the common good. The general will is to secure freedom, equality, and justice within the state, regardless of the will of the majority, and in the social contract (for Rousseau a theoretical construct rather than a historical event, as Enlightenment thinkers had frequently assumed) individual sovereignty is given up to the state in order that these goals might be achieved. 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. An important factor in insuring the cohesion of the state and in insuring its proper functioning is a sound civil religion. It is, for Rousseau, necessary that all citizens subscribe to beliefs in (1) a supreme being, (2) personal immortality, (3) the ultimate reward of virtue and punishment of vice, and (4) the principle of toleration. The assumption should not be made, however, that Rousseau conceived of this as an external imposition of religion by the state, for to him these appeared to be clear and self-evident principles that could and should be adopted by any rational and moral agent.

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Constitution of the Iroquois Nations: The Great Binding Law, Gayanashagowa

Information from Constitution Society Web site.
http://www.constitution.org/cons/iroquois.htm

1. I am Dekanawidah and with the Five Nations' Confederate Lords I plant the Tree of Great Peace. I plant it in your territory, Adodarhoh, and the Onondaga Nation, in the territory of you who are Firekeepers. I name the tree the Tree of the Great Long Leaves. Under the shade of this Tree of the Great Peace we spread the soft white feathery down of the globe thistle as seats for you, Adodarhoh, and your cousin Lords.

19. If at any time it shall be manifest that a Confederate Lord has not in mind the welfare of the people or disobeys the rules of this Great Law, the men or women of the Confederacy, or both jointly, shall come to the Council and upbraid the erring Lord through his War Chief. If the complaint of the people through the War Chief is not heeded the first time it shall be uttered again and then if no attention is given a third complaint and warning shall be given. If the Lord is contumacious the matter shall go to the council of War Chiefs. The War Chiefs shall then divest the erring Lord of his title by order of the women in whom the titleship is vested. When the Lord is deposed the women shall notify the Confederate Lords through their War Chief, and the Confederate Lords shall sanction the act. The women will then select another of their sons as a candidate and the Lords shall elect him. Then shall the chosen one be installed by the Installation Ceremony. The War Chief shall then hand the title to a sister family and he shall address it and say:
    
    "Our mothers,               , listen attentively while I address you on a solemn and important subject. I hereby transfer to you an ancient Lordship title for a great calamity has befallen it in the hands of the family of a former Lord. We trust that you, our mothers, will always guard it, and that you will warn your Lord always to be dutiful and to advise his people to ever live in love, peace and harmony that a great calamity may never happen again. "
    
    The Lords of the Confederacy of the Five Nations shall be mentors of the people for all time. The thickness of their skin shall be seven spans -- which is to say that they shall be proof against anger, offensive actions and criticism. Their hearts shall be full of peace and good will and their minds filled with a yearning for the welfare of the people of the Confederacy. With endless patience, they shall carry out their duty and their firmness shall be tempered with a tenderness for their people.
    
    Neither anger nor fury shall find lodgment in their minds and all their words and actions shall be marked by calm deliberation.

27. All Lords of the Five Nations Confederacy must be honest in all things. They must not idle or gossip, but be men possessing those honorable qualities that make true royaneh. It shall be a serious wrong for anyone to lead a Lord into trivial affairs, for the people must ever hold their Lords high in estimation out of respect to their honorable positions. When the pledge is furnished the Speaker of the Council must. . . adddress the opposite side of the Council Fire and he shall commence his address saying: "Now behold him. He has now become a Confederate Lord. See how splendid he looks." An address may then follow. At the end of it he shall send. . . shell strings to the opposite side and they shall be received as evidence of the pledge. Then shall the opposite side say:
    
    "We now do crown you with the sacred emblem of the deer's antlers, the emblem of your Lordship. You shall now become a mentor of the people of the Five Nations. The thickness of your skin shall be seven spans -- which is to say that you shall be proof against anger, offensive actions and criticism. Your heart shall be filled with peace and good will and your mind filled with a yearning for the welfare of the people of the Confederacy. With endless patience you shall carry out your duty and your firmness shall be tempered with tenderness for your people. Neither anger nor fury shall find lodgment in your mind and all your words and actions shall be marked with calm deliberation. In all of your deliberations in the Confederate Council, in your efforts at law making, in all your official acts, self interest shall be cast into oblivion. Cast not over your shoulder behind you the warnings of the nephews and nieces should they chide you for any error or wrong you may do, but return to the way of the Great Law which is just and right. Look and listen for the welfare of the whole people and have always in view not only the present but also the coming generations, even those whose faces are yet beneath the surface of the ground the unborn of the future Nation.
    
    When the Royaneh women, holders of a Lordship title, select one of their sons as a candidate, they shall select one who is trustworthy, of good character, of honest disposition, one who manages his own affairs, supports his own family, if any, and who has proven a faithful man to his Nation.

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Excerpts from Democracy in America (Civic Virtue Focus)
by Alexis deTocqueville

Democracy in America, Vol. II, Part II, Chapter Four (1831)
It is difficult to draw a man out of his own circle to interest him in the destiny of the state, because he does not clearly understand what influence the destiny of the state can have upon his own lot. But, if it is proposed to make a road cross the end of his estate, he will see at a glance that there is a connection between this small public affair and his greatest private affairs; and he will discover, without its being shown to him, the close tie that unites private to general interest. Thus, far more may be done by entrusting to the citizens the administration of minor affairs than by surrendering to them in the control of important ones, towards interesting them in the public welfare and convincing them that they constantly stand in need of one another in order to provide for it. A brilliant achievement may win for you the favor of a people at one stroke; but to earn the love and respect of the population that surrounds you, a long succession of little services rendered and of obscure good deeds, a constant habit of kindness, and an established reputation for disinterestedness will be required. Local freedom, then, which leads a great number of citizens to value the affection of their neighbors and of their kindred, perpetually brings men together and forces them to help one another in spite of the propensities that sever them…

It would be unjust to suppose that the patriotism and the zeal that every American displays for the welfare of his fellow citizens are wholly insincere. Although private interest directs the greater part of human actions in the United States as well as elsewhere, it does not regulate them all. I must say that I have often seen Americans make great and real sacrifices to the public welfare; and I have noticed a hundred instances in which they hardly ever failed to lend faithful support to one another. The free institutions which the inhabitants of the United States possess, and the political rights of which they make so much use, remind every citizen, and in a thousand ways, that he lives in society. They every instant impress upon his mind the notion that it is the duty as well as the interest of men to make themselves useful to their fellow creatures; and as he sees no particular ground of animosity to them, since he is never either their master or their slave, his heart readily leans to the side of kindness. Men attend to the interests of the public, first by necessity, afterwards by choice; what was intentional becomes an instinct, and by dint of working for the good of one's fellow citizens, the habit and the taste for serving them are at length acquired.

Democracy in America, Chapter 33
Montaigne said long ago: "Were I not to follow the straight road for its straightness, I should follow it for having found by experience that in the end it is commonly the happiest and most useful track." The doctrine of interest rightly understood is not then new, but among the Americans of our time it finds universal acceptance; it has become popular there; you may trace it at the bottom of all their actions, you will remark it in all they say. It is as often asserted by the poor man as by the rich In Europe the principle of interest is much grosser than it is in America, but it is also less common and especially it is less avowed; among us, men still constantly feign great abnegation which they no longer feel.

The Americans, on the other hand, are fond of explaining almost all the actions of their lives by the principle of self-interest rightly understood; they show with complacency how an enlightened regard for themselves constantly prompts them to assist one another and inclines them willingly to sacrifice a portion of their time and property to the welfare of the state. In this respect I think they frequently fail to do themselves justice, for in the United States as well as elsewhere people are sometimes seen to give way to those disinterested and spontaneous impulses that are natural to man; but the Americans seldom admit that they yield to emotions of this kind; they are more anxious to do honor to their philosophy than to themselves.

The principle of self-interest rightly understood produces no great acts of self-sacrifice, but it suggests daily small acts of self-denial. By itself it cannot suffice to make a man virtuous; but it disciplines a number of persons in habits of regularity, temperance, moderation, foresight, self- command; and if it does not lead men straight to virtue by the will, it gradually draws them in that direction by their habits. If the principle of interest rightly understood were to sway the whole moral world, extraordinary virtues would doubtless be more rare; but I think that gross depravity would then also be less common. The principle of interest rightly understood perhaps prevents men from rising far above the level of mankind, but a great number of other men, who were falling far below it, are caught and restrained by it. Observe some few individuals, they are lowered by it; survey mankind, they are raised.

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Key Terms and Phrases Related to Civic Virtue

From Lesson Three Of We The People…

1. love their country
2. honest
3. hard working and live a modest way of life
4. part of the middle class
5. elect people to represent them with wisdom and good character
6. love justice and liberty

From Rousseau Material (Most Important Items Are Starred)

1. * The "noble savage" who lived harmoniously with nature, free from selfishness, want, possessiveness, and jealousy. (Note: the term “noble savage” is from the 18th century and reflects attitudes of people at that time. Rousseau used it as a term of great respect.)
2. Genuine respect for persons
3. Sympathy for those around him
4. In harmony with nature
5. * Individual sovereignty is given up to the state in order that these goals might be achieved( freedom, equality, and justice)
6. All citizens subscribe to beliefs in 1) a Supreme Being, 2) personal immortality, 3) the ultimate reward of virtue and punishment of vice, and, 4) the principle of toleration.

From deTocqueville Democracy in America Excerpts

1. Of little services rendered and of obscure good deeds, a constant habit of kindness, and an established reputation for disinterestedness will be required.
2. Make great and real sacrifices to the public welfare
3. To make themselves useful to their fellow creatures
4. His heart readily leans to the side of kindness.
5. How an enlightened regard for themselves constantly prompts them to assist one another and inclines them willingly to sacrifice a portion of their time and property to the welfare of the state
6. Daily small acts of self-denial
7. Habits of regularity, temperance, moderation, foresight, self- command

From Iroquois Confederacy Excerpts

1. Have in mind the welfare of the People
2. Obeys rules
3. Heart full of peace and good will
4. Patience
5. Honesty
6. Faithful to the Great Law
7. Self-interest cast into oblivion
8. Concern for welfare of future generations
9. Manages own affairs and supports family

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Holistic Scoring Guide for Civic Writing

POINTS	DESCRIPTION
4	In Order To Receive A 4–Point Score, The Response Must:
	Provide one (or more) piece(s) of accurate, valid, and relevant supporting information from the text or other materials.
	Provide one (or more) piece(s) of accurate, valid, and relevant supporting knowledge from history, geography, civics, or economics that comes from the student's prior knowledge (information other than that supplied by the Data Section of the HSPT or a Core Democratic Value of American constitutional democracy).
	Give a clearly stated position on the issue.
	Provide at least one supporting point that is based on the Core Democratic Values of American constitutional democracy.
	Provide one reason that acknowledges an opposing viewpoint and refutes that position on the issue
3	In Order To Receive A 3-Point Score, The Response Must:
	Give a clearly stated position on the issue
	Provide at least one supporting point that is based on the Core Democratic Values of American constitutional democracy.
	Contain at least two of the remaining elements
2	In Order To Receive A 2-Point Score, The Response Must:
	Give a clearly stated position on the issue.
	Contain one or two of the remaining four elements.
1	In Order To Receive A 1-Point Score, The Response Must:
	Give a clearly stated position on the issue.
0	Response Shows No Evidence Of Any Elements, Or No Clearly Stated Position Is Found.
The Michigan Department of Education supplied this document as a scoring example for the HSPT test.

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Student Handout: Instructions for First Essay on Civic Virtue

Overview: You are going to write a one page-essay detailing your ideas on whether or not most citizens of the United States today have the understanding and enduring actions of civic virtue.

The essay will have four paragraphs:

1. In the first paragraph, define civic virtue using at least five words or phrases from the material covered in class that describe the characteristics of a a person with civic virtue.

In the wake of crisis, commentators and news analysts have said the citizens of the United States are at their best when events are at their worst.

2. In second paragraph react to this statement by stating your opinion of whether or not the pivotal events of September 11, 2001 will galvanize U.S. citizens' beliefs and actions in response to the idea of civic virtue:

Either: In my opinion, most citizens of the United States will continue to demonstrate civic virtue and patriotism.

Or: In my opinion, most citizens of the United States will not continue to demonstrate civic virtue and patriotism.

3. The third paragraph will have a specific example from history or current events to support your opinion.

4. The fourth paragraph will have another specific example from history or current events to support your opinion.
Be very specific:

Evaluation: This essay will serve as the rough draft for a final essay on the same topic. This first essay is worth 10 points: 4 points for correctly following the directions for the first paragraph and 2 points each for correctly following the directions for the other three paragraphs.

Academic Standards:

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