Paper Summary:

This paper discusses how, in his book, "The Social Contract", Jean-Jacques Rousseau explains the relationship of the individual to society. The paper relates that Rousseau emphasizes the natural law of personal rights and sovereignty and argues that any government derives its legitimate power only from the collective choice of many individuals to allow government to act as a proxy for their personal exercise of those rights directly. The paper also examines how, for similar reasons, Rousseau opposed the concept of "rightful" ownership of slaves, especially those who did not choose to become slaves. Finally, the paper discusses how Rousseau questions the legitimacy of some forms of democratic.

Outline:
Introduction
Rousseau on the Origin of Legitimate Power
Rousseau on Political Representation, Democracy, Law, and the Need for Legislators
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"According to Rousseau, legitimate governmental authority can only come from the voluntary will of many people, and those forms of governmental authority that derive their power elsewhere are fundamentally illegitimate. Rousseau acknowledges that allowing the collective will to establish rules that govern individual conduct might be a form of relinquishment of individual rights. He takes the position that this apparent contradiction is resolved by the fact that it is in the interest of every individual to give the power of social policy and rule enforcement to the government, because without some form of collective power, the individual cannot enforce any legitimate social concerns at all. Finally, Rousseau questions the legitimacy of some forms of democratic representation and suggests that affiliation or allegiance to sub-groups or representative political parties cancels out some of the main benefits of the principle of individual expression in political choice."

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