The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-07-14
THREE CENTURIES
OF FRENCH LITERATURE.
<. ROUSSEAU.
(Concluded.)


Rousseau having manifested his In
tention of becoming Catholic, Nine de
| Warens sent him to Turin to be IN
structed. Several years later he re-
turned to the Calvinistic faith and was
! formally readmitted among the clti-
zens of Geneva His life at Turin was
one of perpetual change. One day he
was on the verge of starvation, another
day he was secretary, or rather lackey,
of an old lady, then he entered the ser
vice of a nobleman, who treated him
most kindly and whose son gave him
| Latin lessons. He had the best pros
poets of success in life, when he sud
denly neglected his work, was dis
! missed by his patrons and went with
| one OF his GeneveSe countrymen, i'm
agining that he could earn his living
by giving exhibitions of toy fountain
in the villages. In 1923 he returned to
Mime. de Warens, who did all in her
power to help him. She sent him to a
seminary to study for the priesthood,
but he was declared unfit for that call
ing, and then she had music lessons
given to him. On his return from Ly-
ons he found, to his dismay, that his
benefactress had gone to Paris.
During her absence Rousseau led the
life of a vagabond, going from one
place to another, teaching music with
out knowing it and learning it by dint
of teaching, interpreter to a Greek
archimandrite. living from charity,
sleeping in the public squares at Ly-
ons. and finally reaching Chamber,
where Nine. de Warens had estab-
lished her residence. Now we come to
the most happy period of Rousseau's
lie. AT a short distance from Cham
beri are Les CharmetteS,' which Nine
dc Warens and her protege have rem
dered immortal, and to which are at
tracted all who have been captivated
by the wonderful style and the many
grand thoughts of the author of
Emile" There Rousseau studied ma
ture as well as science and literature
there he lived happily with a woman
whom he adored and who seems to
have ennobled his soul by her gentle
ness and devotion. Unfortunately, hav-
ing gone to Montpelier to be treated
for an imaginary disease, he found on
his return that Nine. de Warens had
taken another companion. He left her
and became the preceptor of two boys.
Let us note here that Rousseau, the
theoretic educator, proved to be a very
poor teacher. He was too nervous, too
visionary and he says he felt like kill
ing his pupils when they did not be-
have.
We next find Rousseau in Paris.
where he had gone to introduce a
method which he had invented for the
notation of music by numbers. AL
though he had little success in his
method, his journey was of service to
MIN, as he was thrown in contact with
people of influence, and soon obtained
the secretaryship to the French ambas-
sador to Venice. In that city he took a
greater passion still for music, and on
his return to France we see him OPP
IN ,r.1,
his charming opera, lie Devin du Vii
lage" 1.-THE Village Oracle'). This
work was played before the kings and
had the greatest success. Louis XIV
desired TO see the author, but Rousseau
declined the invitation. The pretext
which he gives is not good, and we can
only account for his conduct by the fact
that his character was becoming mo-
rose, unsociable and most strange. 1t
was at this time that he met Therese
LeVasseur, with whom he lived to the
end of his life. She was a serving wo-
man at the boarding house where he
look MS meals, was completely Hitter
ate and nearly stupid. She seemed to
nave had some qualities, and her hus-
band, as he finally called himself. might
nave been happy with her if there had
not stood between them the forms of
nVe little children absent from the fam
lily hearth. Five children were born
TO Therese, and yet she was childless,
Inc unnatural father had sent the poor
baDes at their birth to the founding
asylum, and neither he nor the mother
ever knew what had become of them
IN his Confessions Rousseau blames
himsef for abandoning the children. but
tries, nevertheless, to give some ex-
cuses for his conduct. In order to an
preclate Emile" we must endeavor to
forget Rousseau's utter lack of pater-
mai 1eellng, for otherwise his character
appears to us so repulsive that we cam
not see the beauties of his book.
III was only at the age of 81 that Rous-
sedu became a celebrated literary man,
LOT ms Village Oracle" was produced
AFTER ms famous discourses. The Acad-
envy or Dion gave as a subject for a
prize essay, Has the Restoration of
the Sciences Contributed TO Purify nv.
to Corrupt Morals?" Rousseau took the
pesEimistic side of the question and
attacked with unsurpassed eloauence
the society Of his time and civilization
Itself. Three years later he wrote for
Ine same academy another fiery essay
on the subject, What is the Origin of
inequality Among Men, and is it Au-
thorized by Natural Law" He won
the prize for the first essay. but the
second did not meet with the Same
success with the judges of the contest.
BON ulScOurSeS, however made him
celebrated, and threw him with the
greatest people of the time. He filled
an office at NJ. de Fraucueil's. but he
suddenly left his patron and determined
TO earn his living by copying music by
the page. He took refuge in Madame
d Epinay's house in the country, wish
ing to live for the study of nature only.
and yet compelled by an irresistible
Impulse to write for the world La
Nouvelle Heloise," lie Contrat Social'
and Emile"
While at Madame d'Epinay's hermit
age, Rousseau fell madly in love with
Madame d'Houdetot. who in her turn
loved Saint-Lambert. the soldier poet.
The hermit, the reformer of mankind.
was thrown into paroxysms of grief.
and his imagination was filed with
visions of love. His sensual nature
mastered him, and he threw
upon paper the passionate letters of
Julie and Saint Preux in La Nouvelle |
Heloise." This work had an immense
success, for the style is enhancing and
the story is interesting and pathetic:
but, in spite of what the author says,
Il is an immoral book, and more dan |
gerous than many coarse and obscene |
stories. OF his three great books, 1.-THE |
Social Contract" exerted, after a few |
years, the greatest influence in the |
eighteenth century. 1t became the Cos |
pei of the men of the revolution, and |
fastened the great outbreak |
against tyranny. It is, however, very |
ltopian in its character and is now |
read. Emile is the most en- |
Turing of Rousseau's works. There are |
many paradoxes and utopian ideas in |