Judaism in the Anti-Religious Thought of the Clandestine French Early Enlightenment

, It has already been noted that Jewish anti-Christian arguments, circulating clandestinely, were a notable inspiration of radical Enlightenment critiques of Christianity. Judaism itself, however, was simultaneously also a prime target of irreligious polemic, most prominently in the work of Voltaire...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Sutcliffe, Adam (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: University of Pennsylvania Press 2003
In: Journal of the history of ideas
Year: 2003, Volume: 64, Issue: 1, Pages: 97-117
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Summary:, It has already been noted that Jewish anti-Christian arguments, circulating clandestinely, were a notable inspiration of radical Enlightenment critiques of Christianity. Judaism itself, however, was simultaneously also a prime target of irreligious polemic, most prominently in the work of Voltaire. This paper explores the tension between these two strands of critique, through an examination of the highly ambiguous and unstable status of Judaism in the French clandestine philosophical literature of the early eighteenth century, which were an important source for Voltaire. These texts highlight the intricate dynamics of fascination and hostility that characterized early Enlightenment attitudes towards Jewish difference.
ISSN:1086-3222
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of the history of ideas
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1353/jhi.2003.0019