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Article: Helvétius, Claude-Adrien (1715–1771)
- Article from:
- Europe, 1450 to 1789: Encyclopedia of the Early Modern World
- Author:
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HELV
É
TIUS, CLAUDE-ADRIEN (1715
–
1771)
HELV
É
TIUS, CLAUDE-ADRIEN
(1715
–
1771), French philosopher. Claude-Adrien Helv
é
tius was one of the most audacious writers of the French Enlightenment. The uproar surrounding the publication of his first book,
De l'esprit
(1758), was so sensational that he was forced to recant three times. Only the conflict between the parlements and the court over control of censorship, along with his ties at court to Madame de Pompadour and the duc de Choiseul, saved him, and he decided that his second book,
De l'homme
(1773), would not be released until after his death.
Helv
é
tius had an uncanny knack for taking thoughts common to ...