Jean Jacques Rousseau. Engraving of Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778), French philosopher. In his lifetime Rousseau was also a botanist, political theorist and a musician. At the age of 13 he took up an apprenticeship in engraving. Three years later he ran away and became secretary to a wealthy woman. In 1742 he moved to Paris where he began his distinguished career as a Philosophical writer. Rousseau's writings argued the moral superiority of the primitive state over the civilised state. His works also supported the will of the masses over the divine right of Kings. This ideology prepared the way for the French Revolution. Engraving published between 1833-1837.