Les inédits de Rousseau et la campagne de presse de 1778

François Moureau : Rousseau's unpublished works and the 1778 press campaign. An investigation of press material written before and after Rousseau's death in 1778 has brought to light several versions of his unpublished works, in particular a possibly original and primitive version of the Preamble to the Confessions. The press campaign was conducted independently by the Correspondance littéraire and the Journal de Paris. The latter, by Rousseau's friends, notably O. de Corancez, tried to honour his memory by publishing the hitherto known, but unpublished, Mémoire de Février 1777, and the Preamble to the Confessions. Girardin suspected Corancez of having important manuscripts such as the Confessions in his care. This article sheds light on a mysterious moment in the posthumous destiny of Rousseau's works, and provides proof that other manuscripts of the Confessions existed in addition to those known today.Moureau François. Les inédits de Rousseau et la campagne de presse de 1778. In: Dix-huitième Siècle, n°12, 1980. Représentations de la vie sexuelle. pp. 411-425