The first sentiment of man was that of his existence, his first care that of preserving it. - Jean-Jacques Rousseau

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Engraved portrait of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, facing right

The first sentiment of man was that of his existence, his first care that of preserving it.

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About Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Jean-Jacques Rousseau (June 28, 1712 – July 2, 1778) was a major French-speaking Genevan philosopher of Enlightenment whose political ideas influenced the French Revolution, the development of socialist theory, and the growth of nationalism.

Biography information from Wikiquote · Portrait adapted from Wikimedia Commons, Maurice Quentin de La Tour (Public domain / CC0)

Also Known As

Alternative Names: Citizen of Geneva Jean Jacques Rousseau J. J. Rousseau Rousseau J.J. Rousseau JJ Rousseau

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Additional quotes by Jean-Jacques Rousseau

I am not worried about pleasing clever minds or fashionable people. In every period there will be men fated to be governed by the opinions of their century, their country, and their society. For that very reason, a freethinker or philosopher today would have been nothing but a fanatic at the time of the League.* One must not write for such readers, if one wishes to live beyond one’s own age.

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