 Despite its charm, Rousseau’s view of musical imitation does not seem to withstand critical scrutiny. It is unconvincing as an explanation of the musical imitation of emotions. It may be though that an emotion we perceive always corresponds to another emotion we feel, and thus that we could depict the former by arousing the latter. But in fact, we may respond to, e.g., rage with a variety of emotions, from more rage, to fear, disappointment, schadenfreude, etc. The theory is only more implausible when it comes to the depiction of objects other than emotions, as the same object may arouse very different emotions, depending on the subject’s disposition and beliefs about it.