Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Faith in Democracy

Avi Sheldon

POL01B

Professor McWilliams

March 2014

Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Faith in Democracy

When Jean-Jacques Rousseau published “The Social Contract” in 1762, his advocating of liberty and democratic rule were not new concepts. Other prominent political theorists such as John Locke and Thomas Hobbes had already published their political theories about freedom and the state of nature, and Locke specifically had written about democratic rule relating to the social contract. Rousseau, particularly fond of democratic rule, writes that “in a democratic government those who are put into high office by public vote are almost always enlightened, capable men, who perform their duties with honor” (106). Rousseau is correct with this point: even in modern America today, our elected officials are “almost always enlightened, capable men” who serve with honor. Of course, many American voters are apt to cynically call all politicians corrupt, uninspiring, and incompetent, but except for the occasional error in voting (which falls under Rousseau’s “almost always” allowance) our elected officials do tend to be capable men* who are held to a high standard of talent and character. The nature of a democracy that elects officials by popular vote will indeed always place some of the state’s best men into political office.

What kind of person does a population want to lead them? Rousseau lists “integrity, intelligence, [and] experience” as “reasons for preference” (103) among voters, and as the characteristics that will lead to a “wise government” (103). It is sensible to want the best men of the population to lead that population, as the complex decisions surrounding the allocation of resources and the delegation of responsibilities in a state are incredibly important and multifaceted. High-ranking elected officials in modern America do tend to be among the population’s best educated men. They disproportionately come from the nation’s top schools like Phillips Exeter,...