Jean-Jacques Rousseau claims that in order to ensure the legitimacy of civil commitments and to prevent them from becoming meaningless, tyrannical, and abusive, one can be "forced to be free." It is unclear, however, how forcing citizens to conform to the general will leads to a society which is any more reliable and capable of sustaining itself than the arbitrary rule of a few power-hungry individuals. When a society forms a social contract, citizens determine …
showed first 75 words of 742 total

showed last 75 words of 742 total
…a power-hungry individual, using Machiavellian techniques, could easily manipulate the minds of the majority, bypassing a commitment of obedience to the general will by using such influence to amend it, and quickly lead to the collapse of society and the rise of despotism. Thus, a general will of the majority can lead to oppression of minority factions, and the stability of such a society is not immune to the manipulations of a single individual. (749 words)