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The\" Death of Socrates\" in Diderot and the Eighteenth Century Philosphers

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This dissertation has been 64—1246 microfilmed exactly as received CALESI, Vasile, 1926- THE "DEATH OF SOCRATES" IN DIDEROT AND THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY PHILOSOPHERS. The Ohio State University, Ph.D., 1963 Language and Literature, Modem University Microfilms, Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan THE "DEATH OF SOCRATES" IN DIDEROT AND THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY PHILOSOPHERS DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University Vasile Calesi, A.B., A. M. The Ohio State University 1963 Approved by a /I Adviser DeAaiftmentspai of Romance Languages \J TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page I. THE FIRST GERM OF THE SOCRATTC MYTH IN DIDEROT......... 1 II. VINCENNES AND THE APOLOGY ............................ 19 III. THE DEATH OF SOCRATES IN DIDEROT'S LA PQBSIB DRAMATIQUE. "D'UNE SORT DE DRAME PHILOSOPHIQOE".................... 35 IV. LA MORT DE SOCRATE IN DIDEROT'S "DE LA PANTOMIME" .... 44 V. SOCRATES IN DIDEROT'S WORKS AFTER 1758 ................ 54 VI. ROUSSEAU AND SOCRATES ................................ 79 VII. VOLTAIRE'S TREATMENT OF THE "DEATH OF S O C R A T E S " ........ 101 VIII. THE ENCYCLOPEDISTS AND THE ANTI-PHILOSOPHIC GROUP .... 128 IX. VOLTAIRE'S TRAGEDY, LA MORT DE SOCRATE................. 154 X. SAUVIGNY'S LA MORT DE SOCRATE ...................... 189 XI. LINGUET'S SOCRATE .......................... 208 XII. BERNARDIN DE SAINT-PIERRE........................... 228 XIII. GALIANI AND A L F I E R I ..................... 246 XIV. CONCLUSION................... 267 BIBLIOGRAPHY....................................... 274 ii CHAPTER ONE THE FIRST GERM OF THE SOCRATEC MTTH IN DIDEROT The life of a great man, particularly when he belongs to another age, can never be a mere record of undisputed fact. Even when such facts are plentiful, the biographer's real task is one of interpretation. He must penetrate behind these events and find the purpose and character which they disclose, but he can reach these facts only through an effort of constructive imagination. In the case of Diderot, many critics and biographers have attempted to reconstruct his life and whereabouts prior to 1743, but they have often needed all the strength of their imagina­ tion to do so. There are many blank places in their biographies, for Diderot himself did not say much about those years. Although there is not much evidence concerning his life before 17^3, when he translated Temple Stanyan's History of Greece from English, it would be helpful for us to investigate these early years in an attempt to establish how and when the idea of Socrates' life, and especially his death, took shape in Diderot's mind— ideas which brought him to the point of identifying him­ self with the Greek philosopher in his later years and of adopting the title of "le Philosophe" of his time. Raring the first half of the eighteenth centuxy, a philosopher was considered a threat to society; and this factor became a strong weapon in the hands of religious writers and anti-philosophers. When Voltaire's 1 Lettres philosophiQues appeared, the work was condemned by parliament as: Propres & inspirer le libertinage le plus dangereux pour la religion et l*ordre de la soci£t£ civile.^ Hie Dictionnaire de l’Academie francalse (editions 169^, 173-8, and 1?40), after giving the standard Aristotelian and Stoic definition, i.e., the philosopher seeks to understand things by their first causes and princi­ ples, the philosopher leads a calm, secluded, modest life, practicing the virtues of moderation and serenity, continues as follows: II se dit aussi quelquefois absolument, d'un homme, qui, par libertinage d*esprit, se met au desaus des devoirs et des obliga­ tions ordinaires de la vie civile et chretienne. C ’est un homme qui ne se refuse rien, qui ne se contraint sur rien, et qui mene une vie de philosophe. Hie Dictionnaire de trevoux. 1771, which has a milder tone, nevertheless expresses a hostile attitude toward the philosopher, as we can see from the following passage: 11 se prend quelquefois dans un mauvais sens, et signifie, dur, insensible, misanthrope. "Generis humani osor." Cela est un peu bien philosophe: Ce Chagrin philosophe est un peu trop sauvage. Another passage states: Se dit quelquefois ironiquement d'une homme bourru, crotte, incivil, qui n'a aucun egard aux devoirs, et aux bienseances de la societe civile. Hierefore, we see from the above that, when Diderot appeared for the first time in the domain of letters, the term "philosophe" often had a pejora­ tive connotation. ^Joseph Poramier, Diderot avant Vincennes (Paris: Ancienne Librairie Furne, Boivin & Cie., 1939)* p« 81. The philosophic group, either because they were aware of their inability to fight this hostility or because they were in agreement with the above definitions of a "philosophe," apparently did not try to prove these definitions false. Instead, in the article "Philosophe” in the Encyclopedie. they made a clear distinction between three types of philosophers: (a) II n*y a rien qui coute moins a acquerir aujourd’hui que le nom de philosophe; une vie obscure et retiree, quel- ques dehors de sagesse, avec un peu de lecture, suffisent pour attirer ce nom & des personnes qui s*en honorent sans le m£riter. (b) D’autres en qui la liberty de penser tient lieu de raisonne- ment, se regardent comme les seuls v^ritables "philosophes," parce qu'ils ont ose renverser les bornes sacrees posees par la religion, et qu*ils ont brise les entraves ou la foi mettoit leur raison. Flers de s’etre defaits des prejuges de 1*education, en matiere de religion, ils regardent avec mlpris les autres commes des ames foibles, des genies ser- viles, des esprits pusillanimes qui se laissent effrayer par les consequences ou conduit l ’irreligion, et qui n'osant sortir un instant du cercle des vlrites etablies, ni marcher dans des routes nouvelles, s'endorment sous le joug de la superstition. It is evident from the above definitions that the Encyclopedists or, better stated, the philosophers were in agreement with the anti- philosophic group with regard to some people who called themselves "philosophes" while in reality they were not. This type of "philosophe" was the main cause of the pejorative connotation that the word had acquired. To live a secluded life and to have a little education are not sufficient to make a "philosophe," at least not for Diderot, as we shall see. On the other hand, atheism or revolt against established religions and political principles alone are not enough for the title of "philosophe." As for Diderot) a "philosophe" must be a complete, all- around person. To support this, we shall take the third definition that was given in the "Philosophe." While the two dictionaries cited above did not have a definition of a true "philosophe," except the standard Aristotelian definition as mentioned, the Ehcyclopedle gives a defini­ tion where the image of a "philosophe" is portrayed in the manner of Diderot: (c) Mais on doit avoir une idle plus juste du "philosophe," et v o i d le caractere que nous lui donnons: Les autres hommes sont determines A agir sans sentir, ni connoitre les causes qui les font mouvoir, sans meme songer qu'il y en ait. Le "philosophe" au contraire demele les causes autant qu*51 est en lui, et souvent meme les previent,et se livre A elles avec connoissance: c'est une horloge qui se monte, pour ainsi dire, quelques fois elle-meme. Ainsi il evite les objets qui peuvent lui causer des sentiments qui ne conviennent ni au bien-etre, ni a l'etre raisonnable, et cherche ceux qui peuvent exciter en lui des affections eonvenables a l'etat ou il se trouve. La raison est & l'lgard du "philosophe," ce que la grace est A l'egard du Chretien. La grace determine le chrltien \ agir; la raison determine le "philosophe." The words "c*est une horloge qui se monte elle-meme" describe admirably the complexity and wholeness of a true "philosophe." Feelings alone, just as reason alone, are not enough to make a "philosophe." A true "philosophe" must have the combination of both. Although the article "Philosophe" in the Bncyclopldle was not written by Diderot, it expresses his ideas. He was the editor of the publication, and as such, he revised all the articles. In fact, in La Promenade du eceptioue he expresses almost the same idea. In this work, he divides society into three categories, which could veiy well 5 correspond to the three definitions of the "philosophe." The "allee des epines" could represent the first definition, the "all£e des fleurs" the second, and the "allee des narroniers" the third. The inhabitants of the "allrfe des marroniers," i.e., the "philosophes," were the only ones who were not restricted to their realm. They were free to go from one place to another as they pleased, which signifies the wide point of view of the philosopher in regard to things and ideas. This work was written in 1747 but it was not published until 1830. What is important for us in this writing is the fact that, although briefly, the image of Socrates is pre­ sent. When Diderot describes Cleobulus' residence, among the few things that we find in the house is a statue of Socrates: On arrive dans sa retraite par une avenue de vieux arbres qui n'ont jamais £prouv£ les soins ni le ciseau du jardinier. Sa maison est construite avec plus de gout que de magnificence. Les appartements en sont moins spacieux que commodes; son ameublement est simple, mais propre. II a des livres en petit nombre. Un vestibule, o m e des bustes de Socrate, de Platon, d'Atticus, de Ciceron, etc. Later we shall see that the same picture, but in more detail, is expressed in Mimosa's dream in Les Bi.ioux indiscrets.
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  • The Trial of Socrates 399 BCE

    The Trial of Socrates 399 BCE

    The Trial of Socrates 399 BCE 2 WHY? The trial and execution of Socrates in Athens in 399 B.C.E. puzzles historians What did Socrates say or do that prompted a jury to send a seventy- year-old philosopher to his death? Finding an answer is complicated by the two surviving accounts of the defense They were written by Socrates disciples, Plato and Xenophon Their accounts probably were trying to show their master in a favorable light They failed to present the most damning evidence against Socrates 3 The decisions to prosecute and ultimately convict Socrates had a lot to do with the turbulent history of Athens in the several years preceding his trial An examination of that history may not provide final answers, but it does provide important clues 4 As a young man, Socrates saw the rise to power of Pericles He brought on the dawning of the "Golden Age of Greece." Pericles--perhaps history's first liberal politician-- acted on his belief that the masses deserved liberty Pericles used the public treasury to promote the arts He pushed a building program designed to demonstrate the glory that was Greece It also ensured full employment and opportunities for the lower classes Pericles rebuilt the Acropolis and constructed the Parthenon 5 Parthenon 6 SOCRATES’ BELIEFS Meanwhile, Socrates developed a set of values and beliefs that would put him at odds with most Athenians 7 Socrates was not a democrat To him, the people should not be self-governing They were like a herd of sheep that needed a wise shepherd He denied that citizens had basic virtue