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Quiz about The Revolutionary Jean Jacques Rousseau

The Revolutionary Jean Jacques Rousseau Quiz

Brilliant, candid and at times supremely hypocritical Rousseau influenced a wide range of leaders and their policies, from Thomas Jefferson to Joseph Stalin. How well do you remember his life and writings?

A multiple-choice quiz by uglybird. Estimated time: 4 mins.

Author
uglybird

Time
4 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
167,053

Updated
Jun 14 23

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
7 / 10

Plays
630

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. How does Rousseau describe man in his primal, natural state? Hint

A blank slate

Totally corrupted

Solitary, nasty and brutish

A Noble Savage

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Question 2 of 10

2. Rousseau felt that social living corrupted us leading to such ills as private property and social classes. Which of the following is his famous phrase arising from this reasoning? Hint

Workers of the world unite!

Man was born free, but he is everywhere in chains.

Put the child in his place and keep him there.

Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest.

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Question 3 of 10

3. What was Rousseau's remedy for the corruption and slavery of civilized society? Hint

Socialism

Revolution

A new social contract

Democratic reforms

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Question 4 of 10

4. In Rousseau's view, what would constitute true liberty? Hint

A Republic in which there is universal sufferage (for property owning males).

Free enterprise, unrestrained by government interference.

Submission to the "general will" of the citizenry.

Replacement of autocratic governments by Athenian style democracy.

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Question 5 of 10

5. If an individual was unwilling to adhere to particular precepts and standards of the state Rousseau envisaged, how would this be handled? Hint

The individual would be ostracized but not otherwise hindered.

Tolerance would be the guiding principal.

Punishment would be administered to force the individual to adhere.

The individual would be enrolled in a voluntary educational program.

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Question 6 of 10

6. In Rousseau's writings he argued for a humane and loving approach to children. How could his relationship with his own children be characterized? Hint

Loving and supportive.

He was childless.

Stormy at times but generally positive.

He placed the five children he produced with his mistress in orphanages

7. A friend once observed what transpired after a child accidentally kicked a ball into Rousseau's leg. Rousseau became enraged and chased the child, attempting to strike the youngster with his cane.

True

False

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Question 8 of 10

8. At age sixteen, when rightly accused of stealing from a wealthy employer how did Rousseau respond? Hint

He ran away but not before returning the stolen items.

He initially denied the crime but then admitted it and made restitution.

He blamed a maid and remained silent when she was punished.

He immediately confessed.

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Question 9 of 10

9. Rousseau married his mistress only after many years. He claimed he never loved her.

True

False

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Question 10 of 10

10. Rousseau had a number of detractors among whom Rousseau himself should be included. What was the title of his seemingly candid autobiography? Hint

My Life and Times

The Confessions of Jean-Jacques Rousseau

If You're Paranoid, You Only Have To Be Right Once

The Triumph of Reason

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. How does Rousseau describe man in his primal, natural state?

Answer: A Noble Savage

Rousseau believed that man in the "state of nature" was naturally good. Still he admitted that a true state of nature probably had never existed except as an ideal, a standard for comparison. His method for dealing with this discrepancy between reality and theory was to "lay the facts aside, as they do not affect the question."

2. Rousseau felt that social living corrupted us leading to such ills as private property and social classes. Which of the following is his famous phrase arising from this reasoning?

Answer: Man was born free, but he is everywhere in chains.

Rousseau maintained that the family was the only "natural society". A "fatal accident" produced private property "from which came economic, political and social inequality, and most of the evils of modern life."

3. What was Rousseau's remedy for the corruption and slavery of civilized society?

Answer: A new social contract

Rousseau advocated neither revolution nor democracy.

4. In Rousseau's view, what would constitute true liberty?

Answer: Submission to the "general will" of the citizenry.

Rousseau had a Calvinist background. The notion that freedom can be expressed in obedience is certainly a consistent with a part of New Testament theology emphasized by Calvinists. Rousseau felt that the "general will" might need to be determined by the leader rather than the populace since it was fallible. Ultimately then, we are truly free only when we obey our leader(s), be he a Jefferson or a Stalin.

5. If an individual was unwilling to adhere to particular precepts and standards of the state Rousseau envisaged, how would this be handled?

Answer: Punishment would be administered to force the individual to adhere.

So then, having determined that freedom is obedience the force must be applied to insure the exercise of this freedom.

6. In Rousseau's writings he argued for a humane and loving approach to children. How could his relationship with his own children be characterized?

Answer: He placed the five children he produced with his mistress in orphanages

At one point Rousseau justified this on the basis of his financial inability to support his offspring.

Answer: True

It is notable that a friend rather than a detractor reported this observation.

8. At age sixteen, when rightly accused of stealing from a wealthy employer how did Rousseau respond?

Answer: He blamed a maid and remained silent when she was punished.

An account of this is contained in Rousseau's autobiography.

9. Rousseau married his mistress only after many years. He claimed he never loved her.

Answer: True

Some speculate that Rousseau was being untruthful about his lack of affection for his mistress, Therese. This inconsistency would, in a sense, be consistent.

10. Rousseau had a number of detractors among whom Rousseau himself should be included. What was the title of his seemingly candid autobiography?

Answer: The Confessions of Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Rousseau ultimately feuded with both Diderot and Voltaire. His confessions were, in part, a defense against their criticism.

Source: Author uglybird

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor thejazzkickazz before going online.
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