Enlightenment and the Intellectual Foundations of Modern Culture

Louis Dupré (1925–2022) was T. L. Riggs Professor Emeritus of Philosophy of Religion at Yale University. He is also the author of Passage to Modernity: An Essay in the Hermeneutics of Nature and Culture and Marx’s Social Critique of Culture.

“Louis Dupré’s study of the Enlightenment, ranging as it does over art, morality, religion, science, philosophy, social theory, and a good deal besides, is a marvel of scholarly erudition. . . . A formidably well-researched book, which would make an excellent introduction to Enlightenment ideas for the general reader.”—Terry Eagleton, Harper’s Magazine“In The Enlightenment, Dupré fully meets the high expectations raised by his earlier Passage to Modernity.”—Stijn Van den Bossche, Tertio“[Dupré] conceives [the Enlightenment] not as a static program, but as a dynamic, even dialectical one. Thanks to this comprehensiveness, his intellectual portrait of the Enlightenment, as fascinating as it is learned, gains in depth and scope.”—Arnold Heumakers, NRC Handelsblad“This immensely readable book will cause readers to rethink the Enlightenment and to see its positive aspects. It will also add crucial historical perspective to current discussions of modernity.”—Donald Verene, Emory University