T HE P HILOSOPHES OF THE E NLIGHTENMENT Voltaire, Montesquieu, Rousseau, Diderot

V OLTAIRE ( ) Background Born in Paris, France Upper middle class family Learned Latin and Greek as a child, later became fluent in Italian, Spanish, and English Influenced by his free thinking god father Classical education at College Louis-le-Grand Friends and Enemies Duke of Orleans Duchesse de Maine Chevalier de Rohan Marquise Emilie du Chatelet Fredrick the Great Beliefs Deist Religious toleration Strong monarchist Freedom of speech/press Natural rights Right to be tried according to law Epitaph

Important Writings Letters on the English (1733) Philosophical Dictionary (1764) Elements of the Philosophy of Newton (1738) Candide (1759) Lasting Impact/Influences Inspired other Enlightenment Thinkers Brought forth the Idea of Specific Freedoms (religion, speech, thought) that would be used by American Revolutionaries Opened up idea of the French Revolution through aristocratic criticism Wrote over 70 Books and Satires that are still read today

M ONTESQUIEU ( ) Background Bordeaux, France– Wealthy family Was cared for by a poorer family as a child Went to the Bordeaux Academy of Science Friends/ Influences John Locke Thomas Hobbes Aristotle Adam Smith Lasting Impact Idea of division of power in government among different branches influenced the concept of checks and balances, applied to the governments of England and later America Epitaph

M ONTESQUIEU ( ) CONT Works Persian Letters 1721 Satirize contemporary institutions Showed cruel and irrationality of Europe Spirit of the Laws 1748 Britain was the best example of regulation of power No sets of laws could apple to all people at all times Beliefs All things were made up of rules or laws that never changes A government should be elected by people Separation of Power No branch of government can threaten someone’s freedom Not all people are equal Slavery Women have the ability to govern; but are weaker then men

R OUSSEAU Born in Geneva, Switzerland 1712 Rousseau’s mother died in childbirth At 16 he fled Geneva Baroness de Warens provided him with refuge and furthered his education He reached Paris when he was 30 and was lucky enough to meet another young man from the provinces seeking literary fame, Denis Diderot Rousseau was also a composer and music theorist He sired numerous children, whom he abandoned to foundling hospitals Was a strange, isolated genius Was friends with Denis Diderot, helped him work on the encyclopedia However, he quarreled with many encyclopidiests Rousseau vs famous French operatic musician Jean- Philippe Rameau. Rousseau vs Mary Wollstonecraft Rousseau vs David Hume Epitaph All men are created equal, and this equality is fundamental to the application of the general will.

Famous works include: Emile (or, On Education); Julie (originally, Letters From Two Lovers Living in a Small Town at the Foot of the Alps); Discourse on the Moral Effects of the Arts and Sciences; Discourse on the Origin of Inequality; Spirit of Laws, The Social Contract. Was a fan of certain beliefs such as popular sovereignty, general will, civil religion, and positive liberty. Saw a fundamental divide between society and human nature, believed in the idea of the “Noble Savage.”

L ASTING I MPACT Rousseau’s ideas were heavily referenced by leaders of the French Revolution His writing style influenced the romantic and modernist movements Specific artists/philosophers/etc. influenced by the man himself include Kant, Paine, Proudhon, Marx&Engels, Skinner, Sartre, and Tolstoy

D IDEROT Background -Born 5 October 1713 in Langres, Champagne, France. -Obtained a Master of Art in Philosophy, abandoned thought of joining clergy, studied law for a short time, abandoned law to take up writing. -Disowned by father for becoming a writer, married outside of social class (below). Lasting Effects: - -His Encyclopedia was the first attempt to accumulate all human knowledge. - - Some of Diderot’s writings foreshadowed the evolutionary theories of Charles Darwin. - -Lettre sur les aveugles - -Influenced Karl Marx Political Enemies/Friends Epitaph

F RIENDS AND ENEMIES CONT. Enemies Clergy Governor of Vicennes His father Friends Rousseau Catherine the Great Voltaire Other French Philosophers of the Enlightenment