In the Netherlands, right-wing intellectuals and politicians tend to present themselves as defenders of the Enlightenment. They see the achievements of the ‘century of reason’ being threatened by Islam. The irony is that for a long time left-wing intellectuals and politicians had to defend the ideals of the Enlightenment, i.e. Freedom, Equality and Brotherhood, against the right. Whereas the left criticised the authority of the church and state, and strove for emancipation, the right wanted to maintain the ‘ancien régime’. The topicality of the Enlightenment is a good reason to focus attention on the work of the philosophers who played an important role in its development. Their thoughts on key themes can still be inspiring for those who have not yet found what they are looking for.

The individual lectures
1.  Reasonableness and Humanity: Voltaire, 1694-1778 (5 Mar)
2.  Materialism and Atheism: Diderot, 1713-1784 (12 Mar)
3.  Sovereignty and Authenticity: Jean-Jacques Rousseau, 1712-1778 (19 Mar)
4.  Passion and Doubts: David Hume, 1711-1776 (26 Mar)
5.  The Public Use of Reason: Immanuel Kant, 1724-1804 (9 Apr)

Image: Anicet-Charles-Gabriel Lemonnier Rouen (1743 - 1824, Paris)
A reading of Voltaire's Tragedy "l'Orpheline de la Chine'in the salon of  Madame Geoffrin