Philosophes

Philosophes Project for Western Civ 2006

I had to compare and contrast 2 Philosophes from the Age of Enlightenment. I chose Voltaire and Rousseau. I prepared a PowerPoint Slide Show comparing and contrasting them on 10 different issuhes. I contrasted their views on Type of Government, Outlook on Life, idea of a Perfect Society, Religion, Book they wrote, Their Life in general, Their Dates, and Famous Quotes they said. I also listed several of their similarities. I then had to answer the following essay questions:

1. How did the ideas of the Philosophes alter society’s values?
2. How did the Philosophes’ ideas contribute to economic, religious, and political liberty?
3. How did early experiences shape the Philosophes life?

Slide Show

PowerPoint Slide Show Image:Philosophes - Voltaire vs Rousseau.pdf

Type of Government

• Voltaire
  • Constitutional monarchy
  • Distrusted democracy
  • Propagated the idiocy of the masses
  • He “would rather obey 1 lion then 200 rats of his own species”
• Rousseau
  • (Direct) Democracy
  • Grew up in Switzerland where adult males had direct vote in a small government
  • Distrusted representative democracy
  • “any law which the people has not ratified in person, is void”

Outlook on Life

• Voltaire
  • People too optimistic
  • People intolerant of other ideas
  • People foolish
• Rousseau
  • People want power
  • People born good and free
  • People who are strong imprison weaker people

Perfect Society

• Voltaire
  • People must work to make society better
  • “Everything happens for the better” is not true
  • People must work to perfect society
• Rousseau
  • If people lived alone on island, society would be perfect
  • Government makes a society less perfect

Religion

• Voltaire
  • Thought the Church controlled too much
  • Wanted religious tolerance for all
• Rousseau
  • No view listed

Book

• Voltaire
  • Candide
  • Written under pseudonym and never admitted writing it
  • Had a sharp wit, words, and ideas
• Rousseau
  • The Social Contract
  • People have direct say in government and sign “social contract”
  • Said that government should be ruled by the general will of the people

Their Life

• Voltaire
  • Educated at Louis-le Grand, a Jesuit college
  • Frequently in prison or fleeing the country due to brash remarks
  • Wrote many books
• Rousseau
  • Abandoned during teen years
  • Forced apprenticeship to evil engraver
  • Sheltered by rich people, who educated him

Their Dates

• Voltaire
  • Born November 21, 1694 in Paris
  • Died in Paris, 1777
  • Denied burial at church
  • Wrote book in 1759
• Rousseau
  • Born in Geneva in 1712
  • Died 1778
  • Wrote famous book in 1762

Famous Quotes

• Voltaire
  • “Écrasez l’infâme!”
  • Crush the evil thing
  • Prejudice = “opinion without judgment”
  • Wrote over 70 plays and was good with words
• Rousseau
  • “Man was born free, and everywhere he is in chains”
  • “Any law which the people has not ratified in person; it is not law at all

Similarities

• Both had ideas that went against all other Philosophes
• Wanted people to be free
• Both had traditional views on women
• Spend a lot of time in Paris.