History 4403




Working Paper #3


As we discussed in class, Rousseau stresses the need for individual freedom or liberty and he argues as well that the fundamental problem with society is that it effectively deprives us of liberty.  That said, according to Rousseau natural humanity lacked anything but the most essential level of self-awareness and hence no feelings as complex as freedom or liberty.  So, did Rousseau "import" liberty into his middle stage human beings in the second part of the Discourse on Inequality?  Write a one-page double-spaced commentary stating your perspective and grounding it in arguments rooted in Rousseau's text.


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