 Berlin traced positive liberty back to theories that focus on the autonomy, or capacity for self-rule, of the  agent.[24]  Of these, he found Rousseau’s theory of liberty particularly dangerous. For, in Berlin’s account, Rousseau had equated freedom with self-rule, and self-rule with obedience to the so-called ‘general will’. By this, Berlin alleged, Rousseau meant, essentially, the common or public interest – that is, what was best for all citizens qua citizens. The general will was quite independent of, and would often be at odds with, the particular wills of individuals, who, Rousseau charged, were often deluded as to their own genuine interests.