Great Enlighteners of Europe: Voltaire, Diderot, Russo

The Age of Enlightenment is one of the most significant periods in the history of world culture. This is the time of the spread of freethinking and faith in the limitless possibilities of man. Who are they, the great enlighteners of Europe.

Features of the era

The path to free thought was long and difficult. In almost all countries, until the end of the seventeenth century, public thought was under the control of the church. But gradually the Europeans got rid of the strict way. Instead of faith, knowledge began to come first.

XVIII century - the era of the philosophy of free thought. Its great enlighteners of Europe formed it. A table showing the names, years of life, and the most famous works of these authors is presented below.

The philosophy of Enlightenment is based on democracy, the direction of all types of art and literature to the needs of the common people. The main task of prominent representatives of the eighteenth-century culture was to introduce everyone to the knowledge. The movement began in England, but soon spread to France and Germany. It is known that the Russian Empress Catherine II, who paid great attention to the issues of education and the reorganization of society, for many years corresponded with prominent cultural figures. Among them are Voltaire and other great enlighteners of Europe.

The most influential figures in world culture were French writers and poets. Among them are the aforementioned Voltaire, Denis Diderot and other great enlighteners of Europe. A summary of the biographies of some of them is presented in the article.

In Russia, the main reformer of the education system was Lomonosov. He was a scientist, a literary theorist, and an author of poetic works. But what were the names of those in question in this article? Who are the great enlighteners of Europe?

Table

Voltaire

The writer was the son of an official. He graduated from Jesuit College, studied law, but later, as you know, he preferred literature. Voltaire was a man of protest. He could not reconcile with the authorities and the Catholic Church, so he often left France for several years. However, in other European countries, he created satirical works aimed at criticizing the local public system.

In his youth, the French writer was imbued with the philosophy of Epicurus. Even Voltaire's early works contain attacks against the church and absolutism. His later work is distinguished by a variety of genres. Among the works created by Voltaire, it is worth noting philosophical stories, journalistic articles and historical works. The French writer had a significant impact on the development of world culture. His work inspired Russian authors. In the eighteenth century, even the term “Volterianism” appeared, implying irony, the overthrow of authorities.

Voltaire originally published some of his works anonymously. For example, "Orleans Virgin." The poem tells the story of the heroine of the French people, Joan of Arc. Moreover, in such a satirical perspective that the church put it on the list of banned books.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

This philosopher was a vivid figure of French sentimentalism. As a child, he studied at the Geneva Protestant boarding house, then enrolled as a notary public. At sixteen, Rousseau left his hometown. During his life, he tried himself in many professions, often felt a need. In 1750, Rousseau wrote a treatise, with which his literary work began. Subsequent writings fully corresponded to the revolutionary spirit that reigned in the cultural world, and allowed the author to be ranked among the great people known in history as the great enlighteners of Europe.

Denis Didro

One of the founders of the idea of ​​advanced thinking did not believe in the spiritual beginning of life. Didro believed that man is what society makes of him, as, incidentally, other great enlighteners of Europe. Didro wrote in the genre of prose and dramaturgy. He wrote a number of philosophical treatises.

Parents wanted him to become a priest, but after graduating from a Jesuit college, Denis entered the Faculty of Arts. Diderot earned money for a long time with translations. The French writer has been working on the Encyclopedia for over thirteen years, collaborating with other enlighteners.

Role in history

The great enlighteners of Europe and their ideas have changed the way people think about society and about themselves. These philosophers showed that man has reason, spiritual strength. Thoughts that now seem obvious, until the seventeenth century were perceived as impudent and crazy ideas, more precisely, could be perceived. Before the Enlightenment philosophy appeared, nothing like what Voltaire, Didro or Rousseau had written about, hardly anyone would dare to say out loud. In the Middle Ages, jokes were bad with the church. Any free-thinking was a sure way to fall into the hands of the Inquisition. In the nineteenth century, some authors (for example, Charles de Coster) began to reflect the horrors of dark time in their works.

The values ​​proclaimed by the enlighteners have rightfully been considered democratic. They caused a wide response among the masses. The work of Voltaire, Russo and Didro inspired many young authors of France, Germany, Russia.