Rousseau distinguishes between the 'general will,' which represents the collective interest of the sovereign people, and the 'corporate will' (or will of the body), which is the specific interest of the government or magistrates. He warns that the corporate will often conflicts with the general will.

Rousseau distinguished the 'General Will' from the 'will of all.' While the will of all is merely the aggregate of individual, often selfish, interests, the General Will represents the collective interest of the community aimed at the common good. It is the sum of the 'good wills' of citizens who, when acting as part of the sovereign body, prioritize the welfare of the state over their own private desires.

The General Will is the supreme authority in Rousseau's political theory. Because it represents the collective interest of the people, it is considered sovereign. It is the ultimate source of law and legitimacy, guiding the state and ensuring that the actions of the government align with the common good of the citizenry.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau wrote 'The Confessions' (Les Confessions), a seminal autobiographical work that provides deep insight into his personal life, psychological development, and the experiences that shaped his political and philosophical views. It is considered one of the most influential autobiographies in Western literature, reflecting his unique perspective on human nature and society.

Rousseau distinguishes between the 'will of all' and the 'general will.' The general will is composed of the 'real wills' of citizens—those desires that aim at the common good and the collective interest of the community. It is not merely a tally of individual preferences, but a moral consensus that transcends private interests to achieve true social justice.

Rousseau argued that in the state of nature, humans were guided by two pre-rational principles: 'amour de soi' (a natural love of self or self-preservation) and 'pitié' (a natural compassion or sympathy for the suffering of others). These instincts preceded the development of reason and social competition, which he believed corrupted human nature in civil society.

While Rousseau discussed the importance of scale in 'The Social Contract', he suggested that a state should be small enough to be governed effectively but large enough to be self-sufficient. Although he did not strictly mandate a single number for all time, he often referenced 10,000 as a manageable size for a direct democracy where citizens could participate meaningfully in the General Will.

Rousseau was significantly influenced by John Locke's social contract theory, particularly the idea that political authority is legitimate only when it serves the common interest of the people. While Rousseau developed his own unique interpretation of the 'General Will', the foundational premise that government exists to protect the public good and the rights of the citizenry is a direct inheritance from the Lockean tradition of liberal political philosophy.

Rousseau famously treated the state of nature as a hypothetical construct or a philosophical tool rather than a historical fact. By setting aside empirical historical evidence, he focused on the moral and political implications of human nature, allowing him to build his theory of the social contract and the general will.

Rousseau's Social Contract theory had a profound impact on the philosophical underpinnings of the French Revolution, which began in 1789. His ideas on the social contract, the 'General Will,' and the role of the state in the lives of citizens influenced the revolution's key figures, such as Robespierre, and helped shape the ideological trajectory of the movement against the monarchy.