How did Jean-Jacques Rousseau connect the general will with popular sovereignty?

In the political philosophy of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the general will serves as the foundation for legitimate popular sovereignty. Rousseau argued that a government is only legitimate when it is strictly subordinated to the general will of the people, acting as a collective body rather than pursuing the interests of a separate political entity.1

Rousseau connected these concepts through the following principles:

• Collective Authorship: In his work The Social Contract, Rousseau posited that true laws are just only when they are created by the people in their capacity as a sovereign body and subsequently obeyed by those same people in their individual capacities as subjects.2
• Self-Legislation: Because citizens participate in the formation of the general will, obeying the law is equivalent to obeying oneself. This ensures that freedom and authority are not contradictory, as the individual remains autonomous while living under a self-imposed social order.12
• Common Good: The general will is the will held by citizens when they reflect on the common good rather than their personal or group interests. By following their conscience in the "silence of the passions," citizens disclose the general will, which Rousseau considered intrinsically right.1