The Cynic Enlightenment

This original study reveals the importance of ancient Cynicism in defining the Enlightenment and its legacy. Louisa Shea explores modernity's debt to Cynicism by examining the works of thinkers who turned to the ancient Cynics as a model for reinventing philosophy and dared to imagine an alliance between a socially engaged Enlightenment and the least respectable of early Greek philosophies. While Cynicism has always resided on the fringes of philosophy, Shea argues, it remained a vital touchstone for writers committed to social change and helped define the emerging figure of the public intellectual in the 18th century. Shea's study brings to light the rich legacy of ancient Cynicism in modern intellectual, philosophical, and literary life, both in the 18th-century works of Diderot, Rousseau, Wieland, and Sade, and in recent writings by Michel Foucault and Peter Sloterdijk. Featuring an important new perspective on both Enlightenment thought and its current scholarly reception, The Cynic Enlightenment will interest students and scholars of the Enlightenment and its intellectual legacy, 18th-century studies, literature, and philosophy.

ISBN 0801893852   Weight (grammes) 544 ISBN13 9780801893858 (What's this?)   Published in Baltimore, MD Publisher Johns Hopkins University Press   Series title Parallax: Re-visions of Culture and Society Imprint Johns Hopkins University Press   Height (mm) 229 Format Hardback   Width (mm) 152 Publication date 29 Jan 2010   Spine width (mm) 23 DEWEY 183.4   Academic level Undergraduate, Postgraduate DEWEY edition DC22   Interest age From 17 Pages 288

Louisa Shea's book is an impressive work of comparative literature, encompassing classical Greek philosophy, the Enlightenment in both France and Germany, and the postmodern movement... This book provides fascinating, insightful reading on a much maligned or belittled school of thought that nevertheless seems to retain the capacity to invigorate widely divergent philosophers across the centuries. -- Edward Ousselin French Studies 2011

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