The Last Words of Jean Jacques Rousseau
c.1780
Medium
Etching on laid paper
Dimensions
Image: 23.3 × 33.5 cm (9 3/16 × 13 1/4 in.); Sheet: 31.4 × 37.2 cm (12 3/8 × 14 11/16 in.)
Classification
etching
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
12081
Art Historical Context
In the Prints and Drawings department of the Institute of Chicago, *The Last Words of Jean Jacques* (c. 1780) by Heinrich Guttenberg captures a poignant moment from the life of one of the Enlightenment's most influential thinkers. Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the Swiss-born philosopher whose works like *The Social Contract* and *Confessions* challenged social norms and championed individual freedom, passed away in 1778 amid controversy and admiration. This etching immortalizes his final moments, reflecting the era's fascination with celebrity deaths and the moral weight of a thinker's parting words....