About The Social Contract
What it's about
'Man is born free, and everywhere he is in chains.' Rousseau asks what can make power legitimate, rejects force, and proposes an agreement in which everyone obeys a general will they help to make, so that obeying the law means obeying yourself.
Who it's for
Students of history, politics and social studies, and anyone who wants to read the book behind the French Revolution and modern ideas of democracy.
- Level
- CEFR B2
- Length
- 3 parts · about 782 words
- Reading time
- about 6 minutes (~2 min per part)
- Author
- Jean-Jacques Rousseau
If you liked this, read
- On Liberty · B2
- The Prince · B2
- Perpetual Peace · B2
Looking for something easier or harder? See Easy English books by level (A1–B2).
Reading The Social Contract in English: quick answers
- What English level is The Social Contract on SeoJae Story?
- The Social Contract by Jean-Jacques Rousseau is retold in simplified English at CEFR B2 (upper-intermediate). It is split into 3 short parts, and every sentence has a Korean translation you can show or hide, so a learner at that level can follow the story without a dictionary.
- Is The Social Contract hard to read in English?
- The original is written for native readers, with long sentences and older vocabulary, so most learners find it hard. This retelling keeps the story but uses simpler English at CEFR B2 (upper-intermediate), so if you read English at that level you can follow it, and the Korean translation is there for any line that stops you. If it feels too hard, start with an easier book one level down.
- How long does it take to read The Social Contract in simple English?
- About 6 minutes of reading in total — roughly 2 minutes per part across 3 parts. Listening to the audio narration, reviewing the vocabulary and taking each part's comprehension check adds a little more.
- Is this the full, unabridged text of The Social Contract?
- No. It is an abridged graded retelling written for English learners that follows the story of the original in 3 parts. Every part also lets you read the matching unabridged chapters from the original, split into short readings.
- Is The Social Contract free to read here?
- Yes. All 3 parts are free to read online, with the Korean translation, audio narration, vocabulary flashcards and comprehension questions included.
- Is The Social Contract in the public domain?
- Yes. Jean-Jacques Rousseau's The Social Contract is in the public domain, and the original text is freely available from Project Gutenberg (eBook #46333). SeoJae Story's simplified retelling and Korean translation are original text written for learners.