Augustine Confessions Rousseau Analysis

Saint Augustine and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, even though approximately fourteen hundred years comes between their existences, similarly commenced on a journey to find their respective individual truths; which are portrayed through their identically named autobiographical works, Confessions. They each relate their “eudemonistic explorations” (Naugle 1) which are alike in intention but exceedingly dissimilar in representation. Augustine’s Confessions portrays a “story of his self discovery and salvation, which traced the source of evil and searched for the truth along a life journey, in which he found himself, a sinner of God” (Lam 3). Rousseau’s confessions portray a similar path of “self discovery in which he found himself a good man and the

Rousseau’s age did not perceive man to be only as associated with God and his teachings and principles, but, more so that man could be defined as unique individuals with their own teachings, principles and rights. This emphasises why Augustine’s and Rousseau’s discovered truths are so different, because Augustine confessed his faults, in the eyes of God, to God, seeking absolution and forgiveness whereas Rousseau confesses to no one but himself, based on his own principles of what he considers, in hindsight, to be right or wrong, appropriate or inappropriate. The move from the “pre modern to the modern era” (Naugle 8) is what is presented by Rousseau to his readers. It is a version of the modern human self where people are “no more or no less what they manifest themselves to be” (Naugle 8), this is how Rousseau presents his truth to the readers, as a recount of events he believed to be important to his building character and self, a makeup of the general truths within his life. He presents himself and his actions with his own critical eye and judgement whereas Augustine applies mainly the eye of