Rousseau: Self, Freedom and Education · Episode 1 of 3
A reading route for the Beyond the Text Rousseau series. Samuel Woodall opens the series with a solo episode on Rousseau’s life and Confessions.
The question for this episode
Begin with the opening of Rousseau’s Confessions, then the stolen ribbon episode in Book II. Notice how recollection, motive and an appeal for understanding can pull in different directions. The central question is how we judge a story told by the person whose conduct is at issue.
Read alongside us
Confessions, Book I, opening pages; Book II, the stolen ribbon and Marion.
Follow the conversation
Episode one is available now in audio and video below. The next Rousseau episodes are planned for Wednesday 14 and Friday 16 October 2026 at 10pm UK time.
A question to discuss
Does admitting a fault make a self-portrait more trustworthy, or can confession become another way of controlling the story?
Image: Allan Ramsay, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, 1766. National Galleries of Scotland. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. Source and image details.
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