It is said that, like Rousseau, they have a romantic view of human nature which they see as essentially good and peace-loving. It is an unrealistic vision of a past golden age that never really existed. This being so, some form of coercive authority is always necessary. The truth is that anarchists do not follow Rousseau. In fact, Bakunin was scathing in his criticisms of the 18th century philosopher.
Most anarchists tend to think humans have both good and bad tendencies.
It is because they have a realistic rather than a romantic view of human nature, that they oppose all forms of coercive authority. Anarchy, it is believed, is a synonym for chaos and disorder. This is, in fact, how people often use the term. But anarchy, as understood by most anarchists, means the exact opposite of this. It means a society based on order.