Compiled by Lewis Loflin
J. J. Rousseau (1712–1778) gave a distinct twist to Deism. Embracing Locke’s sensualism and the metaphysics of Clarke and Newton, he aligns with Shaftesbury and Diderot in believing in innate moral instincts, which he calls "sentiments," distinct from mere acquired ideas. True to Deism, he ties this moral "sentiment" to belief in God, rejecting the skepticism of Diderot that split the two. Influenced by Richardson as well as Locke, Rousseau builds a metaphysical system from experience, shaped by Deistic philosophy but infused with sentimentality and emotion as religion’s core.
For Rousseau, religion’s essence isn’t dogmatic but moral, practical, and emotional—not rooted in cultivated intellect (like Voltaire) but in the naive, disinterested understanding of the uncultured. Conscious progress in civilization and supernaturalism in Church and State stem from the fall, when the will favored intellectual advancement over simple happiness.
Rousseau redefines natural religion: "nature" isn’t cosmic rationality or universality opposing supernatural specifics, but primitive simplicity and sincerity versus artificiality and calculated reflection.
He departs from the typical Deist focus on contradictions among historic creeds, seeing positive religion less as ignorance and fear and more as a corruption of original instinct through selfish human creeds, claiming undue privilege or dodging natural morality’s duties.
Every faith holds some true religion, with Christianity retaining the most original truth and purest morality. Rousseau finds the Gospel sublime yet simple, doubting it’s purely human work. Its irrational bits, he blames on Jesus’ followers—especially Paul, who never met him—misinterpreting it. His views clashed with materialists, limiting his religious influence in France, though he deeply impacted rising German idealism. Ref. IEP
Note: Rousseau’s "freedom" isn’t individual liberty. His societal views have shaped the political left/liberalism since the 1960s. Another source summarizes:
Man is naturally good; society causes corruption and vice.
In a state of nature, individuals have healthy self-love paired with natural compassion.
In society, this self-love turns into venal pride, craving others’ approval, disconnecting people from their true nature and costing them freedom.
Society corrupts human nature but also offers potential for moral perfection.
Human interaction transforms natural freedom into moral freedom via reason, laying the groundwork for political right.
A just society swaps natural freedom for the general will through a social contract, where individuals surrender all natural rights to form a sovereign embodying the general will, acting for society’s collective good.
Freedom isn’t lost but rediscovered in the general will, always serving society as a whole.
From www.lucidcafe.com:
When Rousseau was 10, his father fled Geneva to avoid jail for a minor offense, leaving Jean-Jacques with an aunt and uncle. He left Geneva at 16, wandering before settling in Paris in 1742... His profound insights echo in modern philosophy today... In early writings, Rousseau argued man is essentially good, a "noble savage" in the "state of nature" (pre-civilization), and society’s artificiality and corruption make good people unhappy.
He’s a father of Romanticism and today’s pseudo-religious environmental movement.
His Discourse on the Arts and Sciences (1750) claimed arts and sciences harmed mankind, empowering governments and crushing liberty, replacing sincere friendship with jealousy, fear, and suspicion.
From another source:
In "The Social Contract," Rousseau claimed the state of nature is a brutish, lawless condition, and good men exist only due to society. In nature, man competes constantly; joining others for survival drives him to form "society." "The Social Contract" sets the compact for societal membership.
Rousseau was among the first modern writers to attack private property, making him a forebear of socialism and Communism (Karl Marx).
He questioned the majority’s will as always correct, arguing government’s goal should be freedom, equality, and justice for all within the state, regardless of majority opinion.
Note "within the state," not the individual. Further:
Politics and morality mustn’t separate. An immoral state loses proper function and authority over individuals. Freedom, which the state exists to preserve, is a core principle. Rousseau’s educational ideas—prioritizing emotional education over book learning and learning by experience—shaped modern theory.
Discourse on Moral Effects of the Arts and Sciences (1750)
Discourse on the Origin of Inequality (1755)
The Social Contract (1762)
Emile (1762)
Letters Written from the Mount (1764)
Confessions (1770)
Acknowledgment: I’d like to thank Grok, an AI by xAI, for helping me format and refine this compilation. The content and selection are my own, Lewis Loflin.
