Duties to Self and Society: A Rousseauian Perspective

Rousseau: The Origins of Civil Society discuses the conventions of social orders. In discussing the conventions of social order, Rousseau begins to describe the duties man owes to society and himself. These two duties often conflict with one another and can cause a individual to struggle with the choice of which come first. Every single individual person has a duty to his/her self and society, from the minute you are born till after you die, "Man is born free, and everywhere he is in chains" (pr. 3, 59). My duty to myself and society differ vastly, my duty to society can be broken down into three groups; personal, local, national. My personal societal duty is about my friends. Rousseau described a father as having a debt of responsibility, similarly I feel I have a debt of loyalty. My local societal duty is shopping at local businesses to help generate wealth in my local society. My national duty is to vote when I reach the legal age and when I turn eighteen put my name into the draft. My duties to society have to do with my actions impacting others in the society. My duty to myself is more personal than all the other duties listed above, this has to do with how I want to
In these instances an individual can struggle to deal with which duty should come first. This struggle boils down to what type of person you are. You could prioritize family over friends, you could be loyal with whichever duty came before the other, or you could see one duty as being more important than other. If an individual has plans with friends but also realizes that voting is the same day then they must choose which is more important to them. If an individuals mother asked them for help after school but they also have soccer practice then once again they must decide which is more important to them. While both duties could be equally important, it boils down to the person who is choosing and how they prioritize their