Voltaire's "Essai sur les moeurs et l'esprit des nations" is a monumental work which has changed the face of western historiography. Unique for its time, it encompasses in 197 chapters the history of Europe, Africa, America and Asia to cover all ages, all continents and all religions within the overall concept of a 'universal history'. Voltaire's approach to the writing of this history is radical and innovative: rather than recite the deeds of monarchs and religious leaders, his aim is to tell the story of human progress, in particular the progress of human reason. One of Voltaire's most important and influential works, the "Essai" preoccupied him over several decades. He began work in the early 1740s, and the first full edition published in 1756 was a best-seller. He continued expanding and revising the work for the rest of his life. This edition is based on the last version of the text authorised by Voltaire (1775), and explains the changes he made over a forty-year period. This first full critical edition of the "Essai sur les moeurs" is the work of an international team of scholars and appears in volumes 21-27 of the Complete Works of Voltaire. It will be of interest to all historians and literary scholars of the European Enlightenment and its modern legacy. Contributors: Valerie Andre, Dimitris Apostolopoulos, Jesus Astigarraga, Bruno Bernard, Peter Burke, David Chataignier, Karen Chidwick, Philippe Contamine, Marie-Helene Cotoni, Nicholas Cronk, Robert Darnton, Henri Duranton, Olivier Ferret, Pierre Force, Dieter Gembicki, Janet Godden, Gianluigi Goggi, Antonio Gurrado, James Hanrahan, Ursula Haskins Gonthier, Herve Hasquin, Gianni Iotti, Gerard Laudin, Dominique Lussier, Laurence Mace, Kate Marsh, Myrtille Mericam-Bourdet, Michel Mervaud, Paul Mironneau, Christophe Paillard, Olga Penke, Siofra Pierse, John Renwick, Justine de Reynies, Francoise Tilkin, Kees van Strien, Catherine Volpilhac-Auger, Richard Waller, Elizabeth Zachariadou.
- ISBN13 9780729412124
- Publish Date 1 January 2019
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country GB
- Imprint Voltaire Foundation
- Edition Critical edition
- Language French