A Wicked Company
- Synopsis
-
Austrian historian Blom feels strongly that, with their emulation of Voltaire and Rousseau, the nineteenth century Romantics took social philosophy down the wrong path. In this biography of Diderot, Holbach and the salons of Paris in the mid-eighteenth century, Blom places their ideas within a historical context. He also explains how they were misunderstood by both contemporaries and the present. The radical side of the Enlightenment was suppressed, especially in the West, because of its atheism and, even more, its insistence on the abolition of class status. The radicals were accused of advocating libertine behavior that destroyed morality and trampled on the rights of others. Blom refines these judgments, pointing out that Diderot and Holbach espoused a morality based on respect and the good of the community, without religion. The philosophy is seamlessly woven into the story of the tumultuous time leading up to the French Revolution making the lives of these men as enthralling as any novel. Annotation ©2011 Book News, Inc. , Portland, OR (booknews. com)
- Copyright:
- 2010
Book Details
- Book Quality:
- Publisher Quality
- ISBN-13:
- 9780465022786
- Publisher:
- Perseus
- Date of Addition:
- 09/13/12
- Copyrighted By:
- Philipp Blom
- Adult content:
- No
- Language:
-
English
- Has Image Descriptions:
- No
- Categories:
-
History,
Nonfiction,
Social Studies
- Submitted By:
- Bookshare Staff
- Usage Restrictions:
-
This is a copyrighted book.