Jonathan Israel is a British writer focusing on Dutch history, the Age of Enlightenment, and European Jews. In recent years, his attention has centered on a multi-volume history of the Enlightenment, sharply contrasting the "radical Enlightenment," rooted in Spinozan rationalist materialism, with the "moderate Enlightenment," which he argues was weakened by its belief in God. Through his highly controversial interpretation, Israel posits the radical Enlightenment as the primary source of the modern concept of freedom. He contends that the moderate Enlightenment figures, including Locke, Voltaire, Montesquieu, and Rousseau, made no significant contribution to the campaign against superstition and ignorance.
The biography delves into the life and work of Spinoza, one of the most provocative early modern philosophers. It explores his relationships, career, and writings, challenging conventional perceptions of his influence on philosophy, religion, ethics, and political theory both during his lifetime and posthumously. This examination prompts a reevaluation of Spinoza's legacy and the complexities of his thought in shaping modern intellectual discourse.
With over 300 cross-referenced entries, this comprehensive dictionary serves as an essential resource for understanding the Enlightenment. It includes a detailed chronology and an introduction that contextualizes the period, alongside an extensive bibliography for further research. Ideal for students and scholars alike, it provides valuable insights into key figures, ideas, and events that shaped this transformative era in history.
Ideas, Revolution, and Democratic Defeat, 1748-1830
The book explores the divergence between radical and conservative Enlightenment ideologies, highlighting the tension between the pursuit of a just society and the influence of religion and secularization. It examines how societal interests were nearly overshadowed by concepts that favored the privileged, illustrating the struggle between egalitarian ideals and entrenched power structures during this transformative period.
A major intellectual history of the American Revolution and its influence on later revolutions in Europe and the AmericasThe Expanding Blaze is a sweeping history of how the American Revolution inspired revolutions throughout Europe and the Atlantic world in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Jonathan Israel, one of the world's leading historians of the Enlightenment, shows how the radical ideas of the American founders set the pattern for democratic revolutions, movements, and constitutions in France, Britain, Ireland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Poland, Greece, Canada, Haiti, Brazil, and Spanish America. The book traces how American efforts to implement Radical Enlightenment ideas drove revolutions abroad, as foreign leaders followed the American example and espoused American democratic values. The first major new intellectual history of the age of democratic revolution in decades, The Expanding Blaze returns the American Revolution to its global context.
Six decades after R. R. Palmer's epic Age of the Democratic Revolution, Jonathan Israel has revived and powerfully extended the argument about the world-shaking reach of the radical ideas of the American Revolution - universal and equal rights, democratic republicanism, secular rather than religious rule, and justice for all. In a shrewd, captivating analysis of the Atlantic-wide contest between the moderate and radical elements of the Enlightenment from the American Revolution to the revolutions of 1848, Israel shows that while the lamp of radical Enlightenment ideas could be deplored, dampened, and suppressed, it was impossible for generations to extinguish what Thomas Paine called sparks from the altar of Seventy-six.'--Gary B. Nash, author of The Unknown American Revolution: The Unruly Birth of Democracy and the Struggle to Create America
Historians of the French Revolution used to take for granted what was also obvious to its contemporary observers--that the Revolution was shaped by the radical ideas of the Enlightenment. Yet in recent decades, scholars have argued that the Revolution was brought about by social forces, politics, economics, or culture--almost anything but abstract
Jonathan Israel's radical new account of the late Enlightenment highlights forgotten currents and figures. Running counter to mainstream thinking, he demonstrates how a group of philosophe-revolutionnaires provided the intellectual powerhouse of the French Revolution, and how their ideas connect with modern Western democracy.
Radical Enlightenment and the Intellectual Origins of Modern Democracy
Focusing on the Radical Enlightenment, this work articulates Jonathan Israel's pivotal ideas regarding its influence on modern democratic values. It serves as a comprehensive statement for both seasoned readers and newcomers, offering clear and concise arguments alongside significant expansions of his scholarship. This book stands as a masterful introduction to the contributions of one of the foremost scholars in Enlightenment studies, making it an essential read for understanding the era's impact on contemporary thought.
Philosophy, Modernity, and the Emancipation of Man 1670-1752
The book presents a comprehensive analysis of the Enlightenment, emphasizing the divide between conservative and radical philosophical currents rather than the significance of national movements. Jonathan Israel delves into primary texts to provide a fresh interpretation of Enlightenment thought, highlighting the underlying tensions that shaped its development. This reinterpretation challenges conventional views and sheds light on the complexities of philosophical discourse during this pivotal era.
Jonathan Israel's "Enlightenment Contested" offers a major reassessment of the Western Enlightenment, focusing on the first half of the 18th century. He explores the roots of modern principles like reason, democracy, and equality, highlighting the struggle between anti-democratic mainstream and repressed radical ideas. The book emphasizes the interconnectedness of various Enlightenments across Europe.