Letter on the blind men with the use of those which see

Lettre on the blind men with the use of those which see is a Essai of Denis Diderot published in 1749.

Diderot develops the idea to with it that the Morale depends on the sensitivity. Morals is thus not universal but related to the perception of each one. The reflections of Diderot are based on the study of a example-limit in the person of a blind man-born. However, if morals depends on the personal sensitivity, it universal any more, is not revealed or not.

In this work, Diderot exposes clearly its vision materialist by evoking his Athéisme. The publication thus made scandal, in particular in the influential devout mediums at the Court, and was worth with the author, whose philosophical Pensées already had been badly received, to be imprisoned 4 months at the height of Vincennes. Its profile sheet indicates: “It is an young man who makes the beautiful spirit and is made trophy of impiété, very dangerous; speaking about Sacred mysterieies with contempt”.

The free thoughts developed by Diderot in this opuscule were worth to him six months of imprisonment in Vincennes. Born with burning passions and an extremely exaltée head, seeing private all-with-blow of its freedom and any relation with the human ones, it failed in becoming insane. The danger was large; to divert it, one was obliged to let it leave his room, and to allow him frequent walks, and visits it few men of letters. It is during the consolations that Jean-Jacques Rousseau, then her friend, was going to give him that the prisoner, with whom it had mentioned the subject suggested by the Académe of Dijon in 1750, “If the re-establishment of sciences and arts contributed to purify manners”, which was to become the Discours on sciences and arts : “What I well distinctly remember in this occasion, it is that newcomer with Vincennes, I was in an agitation which held of is delirious. Diderot saw it; I say to the cause, and I to him read to him the Prosopopée of Fabricius, written out of pencil under a oak. It exhorted to me to give rise to my ideas, and to contribute to the price. I did it, and as of this moment I was lost. All the remainder of my life and my misfortunes was the inevitable effect of this moment of mislaying.”

The detention of Diderot on, consequently occasion, stopped the company of the Encyclopedia , whose project saw itself seriously compromised, the booksellers activated themselves to make it release near the count d' Argenson, Berryer and of Aguesseau.

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