Benjamin Constant and the birth of French liberalism
By: K. Steven Vincent
Edition: 1st ed.
Series: Palgrave studies in cultural and intellectual history
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
Published: 2011
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 280
ISBN-13: 9780230110090
Subjects: Political and social views; Liberalism; History
Description: "Benjamin Constant (1767-1830) has come to be recognized, not only as an important novelist, but also as a major theorist of early liberalism. This book provides a densely contextualized intellectual biography of Constant that imbeds his thought in French political developments during the revolutionary era. Vincent argues that Constant's distinctive liberal political stance emerged during the Directory and Consulate, earlier than other scholars have claimed. He also demonstrates that Constant's thought was deeply influenced by traditions of sensibility and pluralism. While political issues are privileged, the personal dimension of Constant's trajectory is not overlooked; indeed, the reader also learns much about Constant's tormented love life and in particular about his important and long relationship with Germaine de Staël"--
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: Benjamin Constant: the early years (1767-95); title: The emergence of liberalism (1795-97); title: Liberal dilemmas (1797-1802); title: Liberal culture: sensibilité and sociability; title: Liberal pluralism and the Napoleonic empire (1802-15); title: Conclusion: "Une philosophie engagée".