| This thesis will cover a number of Rousseau's works including, The First and Second Discourses, Emile, and The Social Contract in order to discover the various meanings of freedom found within them. In so doing, it will become apparent whether or not Rousseau believed that a return to the original freedom found in the state of nature was possible or even desirable for mankind. It seems that Rousseau's ideal condition for man within a civil society necessarily included an entirely new definition of freedom. This freedom is multifaceted and requires moral, religious, emotional and political reform. These changes need to take place before a society can be founded wherein this freedom might be attainable. A number of the major works investigated in this thesis will deal a particular element of this freedom, forming a single coherent concept in the end. |
