Marquis de Saint-Brisson

This chapter looks at Jean-Jacques Rousseau's letter to Marquis de Saint-Brisson on February 3, 1765. Rousseau begins the letter by saying that he does not repent having spoken ill about Saint-Brisson's Ariste , and he does not doubt that he would have spoken ill about Philopenes had Saint-Brisson consulted him. He claims that “the occupation of author is good only for he who wants to serve the passions of the people who lead the others; but for he who sincerely wants humanity's good, it is a dire occupation.” Rousseau also argues that, far from correcting people, books only embitter them. He then talks about the need to go farther away from Geneva to seek a few moments of repose, before expressing his objection to the idea of Saint-Brisson travelling to Corsica.