ABSTRACT:
In the course of social relations, man passes from the representation of objects to the representation of himself. According to the Second Discourse, the social order makes a deceptive spectacle of occurrences; instead of uniting people, it ends up separating them, interposing phenomena or appearance. If in this way the world has become pure representation, and life a performance, the best mask to be put on is that of a civil man, and the best role to be developed is that of a virtuous man who does everything for the collective. The way out seems to be through education, given that in Émile Rousseau expounds a project of human formation that uses representation in a well-intentioned manner, as it does not generate spectacle, pomp, or usurpation. Such a situation can be understood as the employment of art for the benefit of morals, and the use of fiction, play, games, and the imagination, in favor of an action whose art is that of affecting the restoration of nature in man and preparing him for fellowship with those like him. Emile is taught to resist the spell of the representative game. He is also placed in direct relationship with reality, that is, with nature and with conditions approximate to those of the natural state. This explains Rousseau’s appreciation of peasant life with its festivities as the starting point of Emile’s education. Nevertheless, Emile will finish his education in the midst of social turmoil, and it will include taking advantage of spectacles.
KEYWORDS:
Rousseau; Emile; Education and philosophy; Festivals and representation; Festas e representação