The earth would be covered with men amongst whom there world would be almost no communication; we would make contact at some points without being uni… - Jean-Jacques Rousseau

So here I am, all alone on this earth, with no brother, neighbour, or friend, and no company but my own. The most sociable and loving of human beings has by common consent been banished by the rest of society. In the refinement of their hatred they have continued to seek the cruellest forms of torture for my sensitive soul, and they have brutally severed all the ties which bound me to them. I would have loved my fellow men in spite of themselves. Only by ceasing to be men have they succeeded in losing my affection for them. So now they are strangers, persons unknown who mean nothing to me since that is what they wanted. But what about me, cut off from them and from everything else, what am I? This is what remains for me to find out now.

Her şeyin güçlük, görev ve zorunluluk olduğu toplum yaşamına hiçbir zaman elverişli olmadığım ve boyun eğmez huyum dolayısıyla insanlarla yaşamak isteyenlerin kabul etmek zorunda kaldıkları yükümlülüklere katlanamadığımdır. Özgür davrandıkça, iyi bir insanım ve yalnızca iyilik ederim; ama gerek zorunluğun gerek insanların boyunduruğunu duar duymaz huylanır, başkaldırırım; o zaman hiç bir işe yaramam. İsteğimce davranamazsam, ne olursa olsun gitmem; ama, zarif bir adam olduğum için o isteğimi de yerine getirmem. İnsan için özgürlüğün, istediğini yapmaktan çok istemediğini yapmamak olduğuna her zaman inanmışımdır.

Before putting up a large building, the architect surveys and tests the ground to see if it can support the weight; in the same way the wise legislator doesn’t start by laying down his good laws but by investigating whether the populace they are intended for is in a condition to receive them.