Oxford Dictionary of World History | Rousseau, Jean-Jacques
Rousseau, Jean-Jacques
(
1712
–
78
)
French
philosopher and writer, born in Switzerland. From
1750
he came to fame with a series of works highly critical of the existing social order; his philosophy is underpinned by a belief in the fundamental goodness of human nature, encapsulated in the concept of the ‘noble savage’, and the warping effects of civilization. In his novel Émile (
1762
) Rousseau formulated new educational principles giving the child full scope for individual development in natural surroundings, shielded from the corrupting influences of civilization. His Social Contract (
1762
) anticipated much of the thinking of the French Revolution. Rousseau is also noted for his Confessions (
1782
), one of the earliest autobiographies.
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