The Culture of Old Regime Europe381The insistence upon rationalism caused collisions
between the philosophes and the established authori-
ties. This was especially true of the Christian churches,
which insisted upon the primacy of faith as a standard
of knowledge rather than, or in addition to, reason.
One of the first popes directly rejected reason as the
standard of the church, arguing that “[i]f the word of
God could be comprehended by reason, it would no
longer be wonderful.” The conflict between reason and
faith had interested many thinkers across the centuries,CHRONOLOGY 20.1
1702 Daniel Defoe’s The Shortest Way with Dissenters
satirizes intolerance
1721 Baron Montesquieu’s Persian Lettersderides
French institutions
1725 Madame de Sévigné’s posthumous Lettersre-
veal life of the aristocracy
1729 Sir Isaac Newton’s Principia mathematicatrans-
lated into English from Latin
1733 Voltaire’s Letters Concerning the Englishpopular-
izes Newtonian science and representative
government
1734 Madame de Lambert’s Advice of a Motheradvo-
cates university education for women
1739 David Hume’s A Treatise of Human Naturestates
utilitarian principles
1739 Sophia’s Woman Not Inferior to Manasserts the
equality of women
1741 Johann Süssmilch’s The Divine Orderpioneers
the field of statistics
1748 David Hume’s Essays Concerning Human Under-
standingstates case for complete skepticism
1749 Baron de Montesquieu’s The Spirit of the Laws
establishes study of comparative government
1751 Denis Diderot and Jean d’Alembert publish
the first volume of the Encyclopédie
1755 Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Discourse on the Origin
of Inequalityattacks the social order of Europe
1755 Samuel Johnson publishes first comprehen-
sive dictionary of the English language
1758 Claude Helvétius’s De l’espritasserts the princi-
ple of enlightened self-interest
1759 Voltaire’s Candidesatirizes ideas and institu-
tions of the eighteenth century
1762 Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s The Social Contractpro-
pounds radical ideas about rights and liberties
1762 Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Emileurges “natural”
education1763 Voltaire’s Essay on Tolerationdenounces reli-
gious intolerance
1764 Cesare Beccaria’s Treatise on Crimes and Punish-
mentsurges penal reforms
1764 Voltaire’s Philosophical Dictionarycriticizes both
church and state
1768 Joseph Priestley’s Essay on the First Principles of
Governmentstresses the happiness of citizens
1770 Baron d’Holbach’s The System of Natureattacks
organized religion
1771 First edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica
appears
1776 Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nationsoutlines
principles of capitalist economics
1777 John Howard’s The State of the Prisonsexposes
horrible prison conditions
1779 Gotthold Lessing’s Nathan the Wise,a dramatic
poem on toleration published
1781 Immanuel Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason
published
1781 Moses Mendelssohn’s On the Civil Amelioration
of the Condition of the Jewspublished
1781 Johann Pestalozzi’s Leonard and Gertrudeadvo-
cates the reform of education
1782 Joseph Priestley’s A History of the Corruptions of
Christianitycriticizes the church
1784 Immanuel Kant’s “What Is Enlightenment?”
urges people to dare to use their reason
1788 Immanuel Kant’s Critique of Practical Reason
states “the categorical imperative” for
behavior
1792 Mary Wollstonecraft’s A Vindication of the Rights
of Womancalls for equal education
1795 Marquis de Condorcet’s Progress of the Human
Spiritproclaims the doctrine of progress
1798 Thomas Malthus’s Essay on the Principle of Popu-
lationforesees world overpopulation