PRINCETON
UNIVERSITY
DEPARTMENT
OF HISTORY
HIS
449: The French Enlightenment Spring
2013
David
A. Bell T
1:30 – 4:20, McCosh 48
Scope: The French
Enlightenment was one of the most intensely creative and significant episodes
in the history of Western thought. This course will provide an introduction to
its major works. Each class meeting will consist of a two hour-discussion,
followed by a 45-minute background lecture for the subsequent week’s readings.
Bibliography: The following
books are available for purchase at Labyrinth Books on Nassau Street. Additional
materials are available on line, through the Blackboard site for this course,
or directly from the professor.
Diderot,
Denis. Rameau’s Nephew and Other Works,
eds. Jacques Barzun,
Ralph H. Bowen. Hackett Publishing. ISBN
978-0872204867.
Montesquieu, Charles-Louis de Secondat de, Persian Letters, ed. C.J. Betts.
Penguin Classics. ISBN 978-0140442816.
Montesquieu, Charles-Louis de Secondat de, The Spirit of the Laws,
eds. Anne
M. Cohler, Basia Carolyn Miller,
Harold Samuel Stone, Cambridge
University Press. ISBN
978-0521369749.
Rousseau, Jean-Jacques, The Confessions, ed.
J.M. Cohen. Penguin Classics.
ISBN
978-0140440331.
Rousseau, Jean-Jacques, Emile, ed. J.M. Dent. Everyman. ISBN 978-0460873802.
Rousseau, Jean-Jacques, Politics and the Arts, ed. Allan
Bloom. Cornell
University
Press. ISBN 978-0801490712.
Rousseau,
Jean-Jacques, The Social Contract and the
First and Second Discourses, ed. Susan
Dunn.
Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0300091410.
Voltaire
(François-Marie Arouet), Candide, ed. Daniel Gordon.
Bedford / St.
Martin’s.
978-0312148546.
Voltaire
(François-Marie Arouet), Philosophical Letters, eds. John Leigh,
Prudence
Steiner, Hackett Publishing. ISBN 978-0872208810.
Schedule and
Reading Assignments:
I.
Feb.5.
Introduction.
Organizational Meeting.
II.
Feb. 12. Montesquieu, Persian Letters.
III.
Feb. 19. Voltaire, Philosophical
Letters, letters 1-12; Candide.
IV. Feb. 26.
Montesquieu, The Spirit
of the Laws: Part 1, Part 2, books 9-12;
Part
3, books 14-16, 19; Part 4, book 20 (pp. 3-186; 231-277;
308-353.
V.
Mar. 5. Diderot
and d’Alembert, articles from The Encyclopedia,
at
http://quod.lib.umich.edu/d/did/index.html: Preliminary
Discourse,
Encyclopedia,
Philosopher, Natural Liberty, Natural Equality,
Geneva,
Idol, Magician, Cannibals, Mohammedanism,
Slave Trade,
Jew,
Men of Letters, Mint (Frizzy), Map of the System of Human
Knowledge;
Browse articles on Printing under “Category
of
Knowledge.”
VI.
Mar. 12. Diderot, Rameau’s Nephew and Supplement
to the Voyage of
Bougainville.
VII. Mar. 26. Rousseau, First Discourse; Letter to d’Alembert.
VIII. Apr. 2 Rousseau, Second Discourse;
Social Contract.
IX. Apr. 9 . Rousseau,
Emile: Book 1; Book 2 through dialogue with gardener;
Book
4, “Profession of Faith of the Savoyard Vicar”; The Confessions:
Books
1-3.
X.
Apr. 16. Enlightenment Campaigns:
Voltaire,
The History of the Misfortunes of John Calas (online).
Henri
Grégoire, An
Essay on the Physical, Moral, and Political
Reformation of the
Jews (online).
XI.
Apr. 23. The Late Enlightenment:
Diderot,
contributions to History of the Two
Indies, in Political
Writings, pp. 165-214 (online);
Condorcet, Outlines of an historical
view of the progress
of the human mind, selections
(online)
XIII. Apr. 30. Debating the
Enlightenment:
Reill and Baker, What’s
Left of Enlightenment?, pp. 1-36, 115-128
(online);
Israel, A Revolution of the Mind, pp.
1-36, 154-198 (online);
Samuel
Moyn, “Mind the Enlightenment” (online).
Course Requirements:
Grades:
In calculating the final course grade,
weight will be given to the various course requirements roughly as follows:
term paper, 40%; short paper, 20%; response papers, 10% each; class
participation, 20%. However, these are only guidelines. The professor will
determine the final course grade based on his overall judgment of the student’s
performance.
Further
Responsibilities of the Students:
Students
are required to attend all meetings of the seminar punctually. If you must miss
a meeting because of illness or family emergency, you must if at all possible inform
the professor ahead of time.
Students
will not, except under extraordinary circumstances, be allowed to miss the
seminar because of conflicts with interviews, sporting events, or other
scheduled events. Absences may result in a lowered course grade. In the event
of absence due to illness or family emergency, students will be expected to
bring a note from a doctor or dean to the professor.
Students
will be granted extensions on written work only
in the event of unavoidable and unforeseen absences due to illness or family
emergencies, and on these occasions they must
provide notes from a doctor or academic advisor. Extensions will not be granted because of conflicts with
interviews, sporting events, travel plans, etc.. Please note the dates of the
assignments, and plan your term schedule accordingly. Computer problems,
including printer failure, will not be considered valid excuses for extensions.
Assignments handed in late will be graded down.
Professor’s Information:
David A. Bell
Office: Dickinson
303 (third floor – take the stairs at the south end of the building, and make
you don’t go too far and end up in McCosh).
Office Hours: Tuesday
10:00 – 12:00 a.m., or by appointment.
E-mail: dabell@princeton.edu