The author examines Jean-Jacques Rousseau s political thought from the angle of classical republicanism. To offer an account of Rousseau s republicanism she explores his idea of the citizen and civic virtues. In addition, eighteenth-century conceptions of luxury and Rousseau s ideas of the patriot and liberty are discussed. Rousseau s republicanism is here considered to stem from his Genevan legacy and his ideas are seen as a critical response to the contemporary ascendancy of the Mandevillean idea of man, which emphasized the values and virtues attached to commerce."