![]() ![]() Not even the vaunted constitutions of Sparta and Rome, Rousseau reminds us, were eternal. ![]() Regardless of which set of institutions a state adopts, it will always be vulnerable to decline and decay. The key is to match the people and their circumstances to the appropriate form of government. Each has its own particular set of assets and drawbacks. He is very clear throughout Book III and the Social Contract generally that there is no unique and universal single best regime type: “Hence the question, which is absolutely the best Government, does not admit to a solution because it is indeterminate.… as many good solutions as there are possible combinations in the absolute and the relative positions of peoples” ( SC, 3.9.1, 104–5 ). ![]() With regard to institutional design, Rousseau sketches the three fundamental governmental – or executive – forms: democracy, aristocracy, and monarchy. Second, he provides specific advice on how to maintain the authority of the people in the face of encroaching governmental powers. First, Rousseau continues to counsel lawmakers on how to best devise institutions. ![]()
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