Book 1
Rousseau begins by outlining humanity's natural propensity for the corruption of society. He dedicates this book to the exercise of raising a child to be immune to said corruption. Regardless of the public influence, Rousseau is interested in teaching his hypothetical child, Emile, to be honorable and intelligent. He begins this exercise by commenting upon the parenting of young children. Adamantly preferring breastfeeding to other options, Rousseau credits this practice as the first step in the successful maturation of a child within society.
Book 2
Young children should learn by interacting with the world physically, rather than from books. Rousseau advocates for parental instruction in basic ideas of the world. One example of such a lesson is when the tutor takes Emile to fly kites and asks him to locate the kite in the sky by following its shadow on the ground. Now Emile has learned about shadows, corresponding objects, and the motor skills involved in kite-flying -- a very successful outing. Rousseau invites children to learn through inference, rather than instruction. He advocates for first-hand, tactile knowledge.
Book 3
This section concerns profession. As Emile grows up, he is taught a trade of manual labor. The next several years of his life, until adolescence, are purely devoted to the mastery of a craft, teaching Emile fortitude and commitment.
Book 4
In this section Rousseau theorizes about the teenage boy. He believes only in adolescence is a person capable of first comprehending empathy and religion. Until this latest development, Emile has not been exposed to spiritual ideas, but now he receives tutoring from a priest. Rather than risk the corruption of the youth's soul, Rousseau has avoided any spiritual instruction thus far. He believes a child can learn to recite the correct responses, but they will only be confused by the ideas. Emile is now eligible to be taught "natural religion."
Book 5
Rousseau concludes with a brief discussion of the female counterpart's education. He introduces Sophie, Emile's fiance, in order to illustrate his ideas. Sophie is meticulously educated in domestic affairs as well as being instructed in her methods of relating to men, which methods are largely characterized by passivity, allure, and devotion.
