On The Social Contract

On The Social Contract
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
“Man was born free, but everywhere he is in chains. This man believes that he is the master of others, and still he is more of a slave than they are. How did that transformation take place? I don’t know. How may the restraints on man become legitimate? I do believe I can answer that question…”
Thus begins Rousseau’s influential 1762 work, DU CONTRACT SOCIAL. Arguing that all government is fundamentally flawed, and that modern society is based on a system that fosters inequality and servitude, Rousseau demands nothing less than complete revision of the social contract to ensure equality and freedom.