The Social Contract and The First and Second Discourses

"Man was born free, and everywhere he is in chains. Many a one believes himself the master of others, and yet he is a greater slave than they." This profound statement by Rousseau highlights the irony and contradiction in human society. We are born with the gift of freedom, but somehow, we end up bound by various chains.

"Incessantly we obey rituals, never our own intuition. We no longer dare to appear as we really are, and under this perpetual restraint, people who form the herd known as society, finding themselves in these same circumstances, will all behave in exactly the same ways, unless more powerful motives prevent them from doing so." This passage further elaborates on how we conform to social norms and lose our individuality. We blindly follow rituals and traditions, suppressing our true selves and intuitions. As a result, we become part of a homogeneous herd, all acting and thinking alike.

We need to break free from these chains and rediscover our true selves. We should have the courage to follow our intuitions and express our individuality. Only then can we truly experience freedom and live a fulfilling life.

"Man is born free, and everywhere he is in chains." This profound statement by Jean Jacques Rousseau sets the tone for a thought-provoking exploration. Rousseau also emphasized the importance of liberty, stating that to renounce it is to renounce one's status as a man, rights, and duties. He further noted that liberty isn't within the reach of every people as it isn't a fruit of every climate.

On Inauguration Day in 2017, the author felt a connection to Rousseau's book and predicted they'd return to it often. As the author read, three significant questions emerged. How legitimate is Trump's electoral victory and where does his authority come from? How can his nationalism avoid morphing into fascism and what are the real risks? And how will civil liberties be guaranteed in the Trump era?

Rousseau's work offers a good historical analysis of the foundations and legitimacy of political power. It discusses various power structures like democracy and monarchy and their limits. While approaching the individual rights of citizens, voting stands out as a crucial one. The will of the people through voting can check the legitimacy of any government at any time. It's suggested that democracy isn't the best form of government for all nations as each should choose what suits them best.

Interestingly, an article titled "HOW ROUSSEAU PREDICTED TRUMP" by Pankaj Mishra in The New Yorker argues that Rousseau's attack on cosmopolitan élites now seems prophetic. Eight months into Trump's presidency, on the question of civil rights, there is criticism. The UN boss for Human Rights, mister Zeid, is voicing concerns about Trump's actions on various subjects like freedom of the press, women, Mexicans, Muslims, immigration, and the pardoning of Arpaio. All these issues have consequences, as seen in the Reuters article "Trump attacking freedom of the press: U.N. rights boss."

I finally managed to slog my way through it. The reason for giving it 3 stars is that I firmly believe this could be simplified to make it a less dense read. However, I do understand how it was written and what the author intended.

It felt like a bit of a struggle to get through the text, as it seemed rather complex and perhaps could have been presented in a more straightforward manner. But despite that, I was able to grasp the overall meaning and the ideas that the author was trying to convey.

Maybe with some simplification and reorganization, this could have been an even better piece. But as it stands, it has its merits and I appreciate the effort that went into writing it.