Corps et esprits libertins

Throughout the 17th century, writers flouted religious, philosophical, political, sexual, and social norms/dogmas, provoking debate, censorship, and even persecution. This seminar will explore the themes and contexts of libertine thought and practice, as well as the attacks it occasioned in both philosophy and literature. We will study debates about skepticism, Epicureanism, sexual freedom, religious and political dissent, and will read, among others, Montaigne, Charron, Viau, Garasse, Gassendi, Cyrano de Bergerac, La Mothe Le Vayer, Ninon de L'Enclos, Pascal, Molière, La Fontaine, Saint-Evremond, and Deshoulières.