Portrait of Lord Melvyn Bragg, host of In Our Time

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18th-century French writers

18th-century French literature is French literature written between 1715, the year of the death of King Louis XIV of France, and 1798, the year of the coup d'État of Bonaparte which brought the Consulate to power, concluded the French Revolution, and began the modern era of French history. This century of enormous economic, social, intellectual and political transformation produced two important literary and philosophical movements: during what became known as the Age of Enlightenment, the Philosophes questioned all existing institutions, including the church and state, and applied rationalism and scientific analysis to society; and a very different movement, which emerged in reaction to the first movement; the beginnings of Romanticism, which exalted the role of emotion in art and life.

3 episodes

Episodes in this category also belong to the following categories:

PhilosophyScienceFellows of the American Academy of Arts and SciencesPhilosophers of religionEnlightenment philosophersAge of EnlightenmentAtheist philosophersMembers of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences18th-century philosophersUniversity of Paris alumniFrench atheistsHonorary members of the Saint Petersburg Academy of SciencesMembers of the French Academy of SciencesFrench philosophers of educationFrench philosophers of scienceFrench women philosophersMembers of the Académie FrançaiseTheoretical historiansFrench male non-fiction writersFrench philosophers of cultureFrench philosophers of historyRationalistsFrench feministsFrench sociologistsScholars of feminist philosophy18th-century French male writers18th-century French mathematicians18th-century French philosophers18th-century French women writersBurials at the Panthéon, ParisContributors to the Encyclopédie (1751–1772)French physicists18th-century French scientists19th-century French male writers19th-century French writersDeaths from pulmonary embolismDeaths in childbirthDeputies to the French National ConventionFrench abolitionistsFrench biographers, French ethicistsFrench male writersFrench political scientistsFrench women physicistsLamarckismPeople killed in the French RevolutionProto-evolutionary biologistsProto-feministsTaxon authorities of Hypericum speciesVoting theorists

  1. Condorcet

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the influential French philosopher and mathematician who tried to apply his Enlightenment ideas on the benefit of education to the French Revolution.

    11 January 2024

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    Featuring: Rachel Hammersley, Richard Whatmore, Tom Hopkins

    wikipedia article ↗
     
    PhilosophyFrench political scientistsFrench sociologistsDeputies to the French National ConventionFrench biographers, French ethicistsHonorary members of the Saint Petersburg Academy of SciencesFrench philosophers of scienceFrench feminists18th-century philosophersTheoretical historiansAge of EnlightenmentFrench atheists18th-century French mathematiciansRationalistsBurials at the Panthéon, ParisFrench philosophers of historyFrench philosophers of educationFellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences18th-century French writersMembers of the Académie FrançaiseFrench male non-fiction writersFrench philosophers of cultureMembers of the French Academy of SciencesAtheist philosophersVoting theoristsFrench abolitionistsPhilosophers of religionProto-feministsEnlightenment philosophersUniversity of Paris alumniMembers of the Royal Swedish Academy of SciencesPeople killed in the French RevolutionScholars of feminist philosophy18th-century French male writers

  2. Emilie du Châtelet

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the 18th-century mathematical genius whose insights into Newton and Leibniz were part of the great advance in science in the Enlightenment.

    4 February 2021

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    Featuring: Patricia Fara, David Wootton, Judith Zinsser

    wikipedia article ↗
     
    ScienceFrench physicists18th-century French philosophersDeaths in childbirth18th-century French writersContributors to the Encyclopédie (1751–1772)French women philosophersDeaths from pulmonary embolism18th-century French mathematicians18th-century philosophers18th-century French scientists18th-century French women writersFrench women physicists

  3. Lamarck and Natural Selection

    Melvyn Bragg discusses Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, the 18th century French scientist, and his theory of Natural Selection. Who was he and how far did he pave the way for Darwin?

    26 December 2003

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    Featuring: Sandy Knapp, Steve Jones, Simon Conway Morris

    wikipedia article ↗
     
    ScienceTaxon authorities of Hypericum speciesProto-evolutionary biologists19th-century French male writersFrench male writers19th-century French writers18th-century French writersLamarckismMembers of the French Academy of Sciences18th-century French scientists18th-century French male writers