Freedom is a very susceptible term, to Mr. Jean - Jaques Rousseau freedom seems to be a product of nature and at the same time a product of civilization, and either of them is true depending of the context that freedom is interpreted in. Freedom then becomes a set of constraints, chains that compel us to cooperate with others in order to survive. It is for the sake of a community that new chains need to be created, thus given birth to the law. The purpose of this piece is to analyze the nature of freedom, the civil rights and the establishment of the a sovereign power according to Mr. Rousseau’s work.

Let’s begin with men and his freedom. “Men is born free; and everywhere he is in chains,” (ER, 430) I take what Mr. Rousseau means is that In nature, men is born free but as soon as the event of his birth comes to pass, men becomes enslaved to his own needs, to his intellectual and physical limitations. Therefore the only obvious solution to any problem presented to man was to be solved physically, through the use of strength, to build, to hunt, to control their environment. So freedom in this sense is the use of force, and also is yielding to force, “an act of necessity” (ER,431) Mr. Rousseau calls it, and act of self-preservation. And it is by combining forces that men can manage to defend their rights, their freedom. But to Rousseau, strength isn’t just power or necessity, it is also a responsibility that compels to respect the freedom of others. This way power becomes right, and obedience becomes duty. (ER431) The sense of duty then, becomes a sense of solidarity and empathy with our peers in a way that allows us to create ideals that become the basis of civilization.

It isn’t after a civilization or society has been formed, where some are stronger than others, that rules are needed in order to protect those who are weaker from those with