How Did Rousseau Influence The Writers Of The Enlightenment

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The start of the 19th century not only marked the beginning of the Age of Enlightenment but it also it also demonstrated the evolution in the philosophical thinking of western world. The new thinkers of this age introduced many revolutionary ideas that contributed to the uniqueness of the Enlightenment period and expanded the influence of their ideas into the political and social aspects of life. The Enlightenment period also became the era in which thinkers started to genuinely question the legitimacy of old traditions and moral values imposed upon the people by established institutions such as the state and church. The objective of this paper is to analyze ideas and writings of various thinkers such as Kant, Locke, and Rousseau while reflecting upon their understanding of reason and they wanted …show more content…
This concept is so revolutionary for his time because it was contrary to what European politics had seem before the Age of Enlightenment. He believes that it is somewhat barbaric and unreasonable to abuse anyone simply on a whim, hence a criminal should be punished only when he breaks the law of nature. He also gives the example of God and how he “gave the world to men in common” therefore he gives the man to have “a property of his own person” and work hard to provide means for himself. In presenting these examples, he wants to present an argument stating that old traditional values of absolute monarchy simply handicapped the freedom and liberty of the majority of the population while the elite got favored by the system due to their lineage and political ties. He also pleads his case of a representative government in which people have the right to voice their opinions and possibly limit the raise of a tyrant in the future who would end regulations of laws and violent people’s personal