Présence de Rousseau dans les romans de jeunesse de Balzac

Raymond Trousson : Rousseau in Balzac's early works. In the Notes philosophiques written in 1818-20 and in Sténie, an unfinished novel, Rousseau appears as one of the young Balzac's masters. In the many works composed between 1821 and 1827 (alone or with Le Poitevin de l'Egreville) we frequently find a Rousseau-like turn of phrase, borrowings of details and situations, «anarchistic » themes taken from the Discours sur l'origine de l'inégalité, denunciations of the evils of the social order, praise for natural goodness, or pedagogical and religious principles taken from Emile. These youthful works show the presence of a profound impregnation with Rousseau's works, which can still be seen in La Physiologie du mariage in 1829.Trousson Raymond. Présence de Rousseau dans les romans de jeunesse de Balzac. In: Dix-huitième Siècle, n°15, 1983. Aliments et cuisine. pp. 407-420