“ The first pleasures are always mysterious, modesty gives them their savour, and modesty conceals them; the first mistress does not make a man bold but timid. Wholly absorbed in a situation so novel to him, the young man retires into himself to enjoy it, and trembles for fear it should escape him. If he is noisy he knows neither passion nor love; however he may boast, he has not enjoyed. ”
Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Emile, or On Education (1762). copy citation
| Author | Jean-Jacques Rousseau |
|---|---|
| Source | Emile, or On Education |
| Topic | modesty passion |
| Date | 1762 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | Translated by Barbara Foxley |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/5427/pg5427-images.html |
Context
“Would not that have taken place in his father's house, and certainly he would not have acquired these maxims and this tone at home? The first charms of sense? On the contrary; those who are beginning to abandon themselves to these pleasures are timid and anxious, they shun the light and noise. The first pleasures are always mysterious, modesty gives them their savour, and modesty conceals them; the first mistress does not make a man bold but timid. Wholly absorbed in a situation so novel to him, the young man retires into himself to enjoy it, and trembles for fear it should escape him. If he is noisy he knows neither passion nor love; however he may boast, he has not enjoyed.
These changes are merely the result of changed ideas. His heart is the same, but his opinions have altered. His feelings, which change more slowly, will at length yield to his opinions and it is then that he is indeed corrupted.”
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