The Decline of the French Monarchy (Volume 2, PT. 1) (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III. THE PHILOSOPHERS. (continued.) Boubbead And The Philosophers. The Economists. Rousseau's Influence upon Writers. Voltaire modified by Rousseau. Reforms demanded by Voltaire. Voltaire and the Parliaments. Calas. Resistance of Materialistic Philosophy. Atheistic Propaganda of D'Holbach. Communism. Morelli. Mabli: bis Political and Social Ideas. Rousseau's Influence on Manners and Arts. Gretri. Gluck. Louis David. Political Economy. Physiockats. Quesnai. Gournai. Turqot, the Economist and Philosopher. 1762-1774. We have attempted to describe the state of society before the coming of the philosophers, then the reign of the philosophers before the advent of Rousseau: a third period opens from the date of Julie, Emile, and the Social Contract. Before describing the effects upon society, upon the public, of this brilliant apparition, it is necessary to show its influence upon those very persons who were accustomed to lead public opinion, ? the writers. Rousseau had fallen amidst them like a blazing projectile. The effects produced by Rousseau on the philosophic phalanx were very different, very opposite even, but very powerful. The oscillations and modifications of the soul of Voltaire follow each other upon every page of his writings. At the very time when he expressed an increasing ill will against the person of the author of Emile and certain of his ideas, he was irresistibly attracted to the principal doctrines of Rousseau: he entered, as if despite himself, into paths towards which his steps were never before directed. One would say that it was to revenge himself for this salutary violence that he pursued Rousseau with blind anger. Under this passionate agitation, there was, however, a logical development in the changes wrought in Voltaire. It was not ...