The Theories Of Freedom Articulated By Rousseau, Burke,...

Leilte Assefa Professor Leonard Williams Mod. Cont. Political Thought March 13, 2017 2. Rousseau boldly asserts that we are â€Å"born free† but are â€Å"everywhere in chains.† what political theorists have thought about the concept of freedom, its basic meanings, and its presence or absence in the world. Discuss the theories of freedom articulated by Rousseau, Burke, and Hegel. In your view, which theorist expressed the most adequate understanding of freedom? Why? (300* 3)words for each theorist + 100 words for my opinion = 900 + 100= 1000W Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s ideas were extremely controversial, his work has influenced political and social change during the past two centuries. His ideas were progressive during the period and society he†¦show more content†¦He talks about how it is important for the state to rule according to the desires of the majority of the population because that’s is what’s best for the community as a whole, meaning each person in the community should give up their freedom for the common good. Rousseau’s thinking centers around will, individual and general. His idea of will means that all associations are voluntary and he equates it with freedom. For an act to be moral, it must have been of one’s own free will. General will is what is beneficial for the common good. In his state of nature, people are asocial, lazy, and harmless to each other but Rousseau believes that it is better for man to belong to something greater than himself or a community and work for general will. He puts stress on the importance of education as the way humans adapt to work towards the general will. The few ruled the majority. If this is his aim, then it follows that he should be most concerned with the preservation of freedom in political society, initially so that savage man might be lured out of nature and into society in the first place, and afterwards so that Rousseau’s framework for this society will prevent the present totalitarianism in his time from reasserting itself. A good society grants its citizens, that strive for the common good, the suitable environment for development (273). Rousseau distinguished between two types of will: particular will