Introduction

In his later years Rousseau was proud of having been born a citizen of Geneva, but his childhood there was unhappy. His mother died almost immediately after his birth on June 28, 1712, and when he was sixteen he ran away from the home in which he had not been given much attention. He was befriended by an older woman, Mme. de Warens, through whose influence he converted to Roman Catholicism. While living with her he read a great deal and studied music, at which he hoped to earn a living. In 1742 Rousseau made his way to Paris, where he eventually obtained a post as secretary to the French ambassador to Venice. After losing his job because of a quarrel, he returned to Paris. There he established a liaison with an uneducated woman by whom he had five children, all of whom he sent to be raised in a home for foundlings.

In 1750 Rousseau won first prize in a contest with his Discourse on the Arts and Sciences. An opera he had written was performed with great success as well. He had been enlisted to write on music for the Encyclopedia, the repository of advanced thinking and up-to-date science that became one of the principal vehicles of enlightened throught, and he developed friendships with many of the other encyclopedists. In 1754 he rejoined his original Protestant church.