900 Quotations from Modern Philosophy

Take a tour through nine of the finest minds of all time, with ‘900 Quotations from Modern Philosophy.’ With words of wisdom, reflections, and observations on everything from life and love to death and hatred, and everything in between, this is a superb book for those looking for inspiring and self-questioning thoughts to gain a new perspective on our existence. A superb read for fans of modern philosophy and those who simply want something fascinating to dip in and out of. Michel de Montaigne (1533 – 1592) was a French philosopher, who pioneered the use of essays as a literary device. Montesquieu (1689 – 1755) was also French, whose writing had a huge influence on political systems. Voltaire (1694 – 1778), also from France, was one of the founders of the French Enlightenment movement. Niccolò Machiavelli (1469 – 1527) was an Italian diplomat who excused the use of unscrupulous means in politics. Born in Geneva, Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712 – 1778) was a spearhead in the European Enlightenment movement. Born in Germany, Immanuel Kant (1724 – 1804) was another central figure of Enlightenment philosophy, as was Dutchman, Baruch Spinoza (1632 – 1677). Born in France, Blaise Pascal (1623 – 1662) was a fideistic philosopher, while Francis Bacon (1909 – 1992) is best known as an existential artist.

Monique et Bernard Cottret ont publié en 2004 une biographie de Rousseau chez Perrin.Ils sont des spécialistes reconnus de l’histoire des religions, en particulier du protestantisme et du jansénisme. Monique Cottret est professeur d’histoire moderne à Paris X–Nanterre. Bernard Cottret enseigne dans plusieurs universités et institut. Il est aussi un spécialiste de l’histoire britannique et américaine.

Blaise Pascal; (19 June 1623 – 19 August 1662) was a French mathematician, physicist, inventor, philosopher, writer and Catholic theologian. He was a child prodigy who was educated by his father, a tax collector in Rouen. Pascal's earliest mathematical work was on conic sections; he wrote a significant treatise on the subject of projective geometry at the age of 16. He later corresponded with Pierre de Fermat on probability theory, strongly influencing the development of modern economics and social science. In 1642, while still a teenager, he started some pioneering work on calculating machines (called Pascal's calculators and later Pascalines), establishing him as one of the first two inventors of the mechanical calculator. He also worked in the natural and applied sciences, where he made important contributions to the study of fluids, and clarified the concepts of pressure and vacuum by generalising the work of Evangelista Torricelli. Following Galileo Galilei and Torricelli, in 1647, he rebutted Aristotle's followers who insisted that nature abhors a vacuum. Pascal's results caused many disputes before being accepted. Pascal also wrote in defence of the scientific method.

RANÇOIS-MARIE AROUET, DIT VOLTAIRE (1694 – 1778) Philosophe et écrivain des Lumières ayant participé à l’Encyclopédie, Voltaire met en scène ses idées dans des contes, des nouvelles et des pamphlets. Sa prose spirituelle fait de lui un polémiste de génie. Candide (n° 31), Zadig ou la Destinée (n° 77), L’Ingénu (n° 180) et La Princesse de Babylone (n° 356) sont disponibles chez Librio.

Kant (1724-1804), né à Kœnigsberg, il y passa sa vie, toute entière consacrée à la méditation et à l'enseignement. Aucun événement remarquable ne troubla cette existence toute intellectuelle.

Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban, (22 January 1561 – 9 April 1626) was an English philosopher and statesman who served as Attorney General and as Lord Chancellor of England. His works are credited with developing the scientific method and remained influential through the scientific revolution. (Wikipedia)

Nicolas Machiavel (1469-1527) est l'un des plus grands penseurs de la Renaissance italienne.
Après Le Prince, L'art de la guerre est son maître livre.

Michel de Montaigne est né en 1533 en Dordogne et mort en 1592. Fils de négociant, il reçoit une éducation humaniste qui l’amène à entreprendre des études de droit. Il se lie d’amitié avec Estienne de la Boétie, et commence à rédiger les Essais comme une préface au Discours de la servitude volontaire. Mais son œuvre dépassera cette première ambition, puisque finalement Montaigne décide de se peindre lui-même, dans une sincérité qui interdit la forme traditionnelle et étudiée des écrits de l’époque. Il est ainsi le premier à rédiger un ouvrage qui suit le fil de ses pensées sans les détourner de leur contenu par une forme préétablie. Cette démarche marque une indépendance d’esprit qui reste constante tout au long des Essais.