Enlightenment thinkers and their ideas about rights and government

Grade 7 Social Studies Worksheet - Challenge Me

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Rousseau, The Social Contract (1762)

   Who made it: Jean-Jacques Rousseau. When: 1762. Where: written in French; Rousseau was from Geneva. For whom: readers in Europe. Why: to explain what makes laws rightful. Line 1 (Rousseau, The Social Contract (1762), Book I, chapter 1; English translation by G. D. H. Cole, 1913, p. 5): "Man is born free; and everywhere he is in chains." Line 2 (Rousseau, The Social Contract (1762), Book I, chapter 6; English translation by G. D. H. Cole, 1913, p. 15): "Each of us puts his person and all his power in common under the supreme direction of the general will, and, in our corporate capacity, we receive each member as an indivisible part of the whole." Source card "Locke, Second Treatise (1690)". Who made it: John Locke. When: published December 1689, dated 1690. Where: England. For whom: English readers. Why: to explain what government is for. Line 3 (Locke, Second Treatise of Government, chapter IX, section 124; original English, Morley's 1884 printing, p. 257): "The great and chief end, therefore, of men uniting into commonwealths, and putting themselves under government, is the preservation of their property…" Below the cards: the US Constitution (1787) begins "We the People of the United States". The Declaration of Independence (1776) says governments derive "their just powers from the consent of the governed". Historians believe Locke's Two Treatises influenced the Declaration's wording; what Rousseau meant by the general will is still debated.

2. 1.

   Which line is Rousseau's most famous opening, Tala asks?

   • Line 1
   • Line 3
   • Line 2
   • A line by Montesquieu
3. 2.

   Which line names the general will, Zee asks?

   • A line by Locke
   • Line 2
   • Line 1
   • Line 3
4. 3.

   Who wrote line 3, about the chief end of government, Ari asks?

   • Montesquieu, in The Spirit of Laws
   • G. D. H. Cole, the translator
   • Rousseau, in The Social Contract
   • John Locke
5. 4.

   Which words below the cards echo Rousseau's idea that laws come from the people, Bo asks?

   • "We the People of the United States"
   • "Man is born free"
   • "vested in a President"
   • "one supreme Court"
6. 5.

   Which words below the cards echo Locke's consent of the governed, Esme asks?

   • "Man is born free"
   • "We the People of the United States"
   • "from the consent of the governed"
   • "the general will"
7. 6.

   By Locke's line 3, what is government chiefly for, Jun asks?

   • Making the king rich
   • Preserving people's property
   • Ending the laws
   • Building palaces
8. 7.

   What should Luz say about the meaning of Rousseau's general will?

   • It plainly means a vote by the majority, as historians agree
   • Rousseau gave no explanation of it
   • Its meaning is still debated
   • It means the will of one king
9. 8.

   Rousseau wrote, "Man is born free; and everywhere he is in chains." What is a careful reading, Milo asks?

   • People in Europe wore real iron chains on their feet
   • People live under powers that bind them
   • People are not born free
   • Rousseau praised chains
10. 9.

    Pia's note says, "Rousseau wrote line 3, on government and property." Which fix is right?

    • Change "Rousseau" to "Locke"
    • Change "government" to "music"
    • Change "property" to "palaces"
    • Leave it: the line is on Rousseau's card
11. 10.

    Ren's note says, "Historians agree on exactly what the general will means." Which fix is right?

    • Change it: its meaning is still debated
    • Change "Historians" to "Kings"
    • Change "general" to "secret"
    • Leave it: there is one agreed meaning