How Did Rousseau Influence American Government

The Enlightenment was a time when people developed new ideas about human rights, human existence, and the level of control the people should have over their futures and government. Natural rights, the Social Contract, and Republicanism were some of the many ideas from this period of time. John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, William Blackstone, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau were some of the few well-known philosophers during this time. John Locke and Jean-Jacques were the philosophers that influenced American government the most. They created multiple ideas that have helped shape society to this day. Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a Parisian philosopher in the 18th century. Rousseau is best known for his book, The Social contract, which was published in 1762. The Social Contract was the idea that, as stated in the ICivics article, “In order to have real authority, government must be based on an agreement, or contract, people make with society. Rousseau believed that the majority shall rule, which …show more content…
He believed in consent of the governed. This is when the authority of the government depends on the consent of the people, which may be expressed by votes in elections. One of Locke’s biggest ideas was natural rights. This was the right to life, liberty, and property. As stated in the Icivics article, “Life refers to the fact that people want to live and will fight to survive, Liberty means that people want to be as free as possible to make their own decisions. Property represents the fact that people want to own things that help them survive, such as land, food, and tools.” America used this idea in the Declaration of Independence, but changed property to the pursuit of happiness, meaning you can freely enjoy your life as long as you don’t do anything illegal or violate the rights of others. These unalienable rights are what keep American society