Williams's treatment is accurate and reliable, but on two interlinked questions, namely, Rousseau's relationship to his native Geneva and his attitude to democracy, I wish he had said more than he does. He concludes with two appendices: the first giving a more synoptic account of the general will than emerges from the commentary itself the second discussing Rousseau's attitude to women. After a useful placing of Rousseau in his intellectual and historical context, Williams provides the reader with a chapter-by-chapter commentary, clarifying issues that will be obscure to a modern reader and signposting problems and disagreements with interpretation. It offers the novice a secure companion to the original text, and it gives those already familiar with Rousseau an insightful interpretation that can sit alongside others. David Lay Williams's book is the latest addition to the enormous and varied literature on the Social Contract, and it is a very fine contribution.
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