Jean Jacques Rosseau

Rousseau was born in Geneva, the son of a watchmaker. His mother died shortly after his birth, and his aunt and uncle raised him. At 16 he set out on into the world which brought him into contact with Louise de Warens, who became his patron and later his lover. She arranged for his trip to Turin, where he became a Roman Catholic convert. After serving as a footman in a powerful family, he left Turin …

…his time by creating new standards on education and learning. Rousseau’s thoughts can be summed up in a quote from his book, “The Social Contract,” (Book 2, Ch. 2) “Man is born free and everywhere he is in chains. Let us then admit that force does not create right, and that we are obliged to obey only legitimate powers. In that case, my original thought recurs, live free as equal individuals in a state of nature.”